Pokemon NG: Kanto Saga
by PokemonFreak90
Summary: Adam Ketchum - son of Ash and Dawn - and his friend begin their journey to not only become Pokemon Masters, but to also find Adam's father, who went missing over a month ago. A story of freindship, courage, and undying love. It's the New Generation!
1. New  Generation, New Journey!

**Author's Note: Welcome to my third Pokemon story! It's being co-authored by XashXdawnX. Thank you for agreeing to help me write, you are awesome! We hope you enjoy and be sure to R&R!**

**Disclaimer: The following a non-profit fan-based story. Neither my co-author nor I own Pokemon. All rights are reserved to their own respective owners, which include Nintendo, Game Freak, and Satoshi Tajiri.**

_"Sceptile, use Bullet Seed!" Ash Ketchum commanded.__Sceptile launched a bombardment of grassy seeds at Cynthia's Gastrodon, getting a super-effective hit._

_"Gast!" Gastrodon cried painfully._

_"Gastrodon, use Surf!" Cynthia__ shouted._

_"Use Leaf Blade to break up the wave! Then use Solarbeam!" _

_The wave formed and Sceptile jumped high in the air and slashed through the water. He then released a powerful beam of massive light and energy at Gastrodon, blasting it as it engulfed its entire body._

_"Gas...Gastrodon..." Gastrodon said fainting._

_Cynthia returned her fallen Pokemon._

_"Gastrodon is unable to battle! The winner and new champion is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town!"_

_Ash jumped up in joy and pumped a fist in the air._

The images on the TV vanished and the black screen filled the TV. Sighing, I got up and removed the tape. I always enjoyed watching old videos of my parents' greatest Pokemon battles, but mostly my dad's.

My name is Adam Ketchum. I recently turned ten years old, and tomorrow I start my Pokemon journey. My parents are Ash Ketchum, the World's Greatest Pokemon Master and Dawn Ketchum (who was formerly Dawn Berlitz), Sinnoh's Top Coordinator, although she had won the Grand Festival in Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn as well.

A knock was made on my door and my mom opened the door.

"Adam, it's time for bed." she said, walking into my room.

"Okay then." I said, even though I wasn't very tired.

I grabbed my pajamas and walked into my bathroom to change and brush my teeth. After I had finished, I walked back out and climbed into my bed.

I laid down and my mom sat at the edge of my bed.

"I'll see you in the morning. I'm making your favorite." she said, stroking my hair back so it stayed out of my face. It was a thing that parents usually do to their little kids. And I know that since I'm ten, I'm still technically a kid, but felt that since I was going out by myself into the world of Pokemon, I was getting too old for these kind of gestures that my mom was using. My dad raised me to be more mature, not a thick-headed dense guy like he was at my age.

But I let my mom stroke my hair anyway. It was one of her ways of showing me that she loved me, and to me, there was nothing wrong with that. Besides, I had heard about parents who don't care about their children, so I was thankful for the mom and dad that I had. Another reason my mom still made these gestures is because I reminded her so much of my dad, and I could tell that they loved each other very much. Heck, I had even heard a rumour that the great Arceus, the creator himself, had given his blessing to my parents. It could also be that she was showing me extra affection since my dad wasn't with us anymore, and she was doing it for him through me. I found that alright, since I knew how much she loved him and missed him.

"Okay. I love you." I replied.

"Love you, too. Good night, sweetie." she said, kissing my forehead.

She walked out of my room, turning the light off, and closing the door. I rolled over and looked at a picture that stood on my dresser.

The picture was of me, my mom, and my dad. It was the last picture that we had ever taken with the three of us together. I fell asleep looking at the picture.

* * *

><p>"Adam, time to get up!" my mom yelled up the stairs.<p>

I opened my eyes and glanced at the clock.

"Five more minutes won't hurt." I muttered, closing my eyes.

My door was swung opened and I heard footsteps. Soon sunlight was hitting me in the face.

I groaned and opened my eyes. My mom stood by my window and she had opened the curtains.

"Get up." she said softly, ruffling my hair and leaving my room.

I sighed and rubbed my eyes. I guess she was right. The last thing I wanted to do was oversleep and not get a Pokemon, like my dad had done. Although he DID end up getting Pikachu, I probably wouldn't get that same lucky break. I got up from my bed and went into my bathroom.

I walked out after twenty minutes dressed in my journey clothes.

I stared at my reflection. I wore a pair of white jeans, a black undershirt with a red jacket over it that had short white sleeves, and black sneakers. I also wore my dad's old hat that he had worn throughout his first Kanto and Johto journeys, and black fingerless gloves. My backpack was white and red.

I had sapphire blue eyes like my mom with zigzag birthmarks under them and black messy hair like my dad's, which was spiked in the same style as his, but not spiked outward as much. I preferred my hair a little shorter than his.

I reached over to my dresser and took the picture of me and my parents off of it and put it in my backpack.

"Adam, breakfast!" my mom called.

I looked at myself one last time and went down to the kitchen to eat. My mom had just placed my plate on the table when I entered. She was wearing a pink t-shirt, blue jeans, and pink flats. She smiled at me and a few tears were in her eyes.

"Mom, are you OK?" I asked sitting down.

"Yes." she said. I could tell that she was going to miss me, especially since I was all that she had left...but I was determined to change that.

She took a seat and started eating.

"So are you ready to travel with Jason?" she asked.

"Yeah. Jason is ready, I'm ready." I said and scooped some more food into my mouth. I have my father's appetite, but better table manners. I try not to stuff myself full all at once.

I finished my food and then grabbed my backpack.

"I'll be back to show you my Pokemon." I said as I stood up from the table.

"Okay." my mom replied, picking up dishes.

I walked out of the house and hurried to the lab where Professor Gary Oak waited. I arrived at the lab in record time and walked in.

"Good to see you, Adam." Gary said from the farthest wall from the door.

"Hey Gary, Jason." I said as I walked up to the two.

Jason was the son of Gary and Leaf. Jason had dark brown hair like Leaf, spiked like Gary's hair, and dark green eyes like Gary. He wore a green shirt, a black jacket over it, and black jeans with sneakers. His backpack was green and black.

"Well Adam, choose your Pokemon." Gary said, motioning to the table in front of him.

I walked up to the table and grabbed the Pokeball with a leaf on it.

"Bulbasaur, the gentle grass Pokemon." Gary said.

"I choose Bulbasaur." I said.

"Good choice." Gary said as he grabbed some Pokeballs and a Pokedex.

He handed me four Pokeballs and the Pokedex.

"Well, good luck. You two have fun and be safe." Gary said.

"We will, dad." Jason replied.

"Thank you." I added.

Gary nodded his head and we turned to leave, but Leaf came running in. She was wearing a green tank top and a white knee-length skirt.

"Adam, who did you choose?" she asked.

For a grown woman, she acted like a little kid most of the time. She was the same age as my dad and Gary. They had grown up in Pallet Town together, but while my dad and Jason's dad chose to go on a journey and become Pokemon Trainers, she decided not to, because she just wanted a Pokemon to be friends with. As her name implies, she has a thing for Grass Pokemon.

So when Gary came back to Pallet Town some years later to take over the job at the lab, he eventually fell in love with Leaf and gave her a beautiful Bellossom - that he had caught himself - as a gift and he asked her to be his girlfriend. And for them, everything fell into place after that.

So I knew that she would really like my choice of Pokemon. "Bulbasaur." I answered.

"Great choice! Well, you two have fun." she said, smiling and hugging us both.

We left the lab and headed to my house.

"So who did you choose, Jason?" I asked as we walked towards my house.

"I'll show you when we get to your house." he said running his hand through his hair.

I just nodded my head. Unlike our fathers, Jason and I were more like friends. Even though we were both chasing the same dream, we agreed to be friends first, rivals second. But we still had minor quarrels every now and then. We arrived at my house and my mom was waiting outside.

"Hey, mom." I greeted.

"Hey, mom." Jason said.

Jason calls my mom, "mom" since he's over here a lot.

"Hi, boys. Who did you choose?" she asked.

I tossed my Pokeball to reveal Bulbasaur. Jason tossed his Pokeball to reveal Charmander.

"Good choices, boys." But then, she suddenly said, "Adam, I would like you to take Pikachu with you on your journey."

"What?" I asked, shocked.

"He hasn't battled in a while. He misses it some and he needs to travel again."

"Sure, mom...of course." I said. This was unexpected. My dad's Pikachu? I felt strange, but also honoured and happy. If anybody could help me in my quest to be a Master and also find dad, it would have to be Pikachu!

Pikachu came out of the house and hopped onto my shoulder. Now, I was starting to feel like my dad. My mom handed me a Pokeball that had a faded lightning bolt on it.

"In case anything ever happens." she said.

I nodded and attached it to my belt. I hugged my mom and she hugged Jason, too.

"Good luck and have fun. I'll miss you boys." she said.

We nodded and started down the road that would lead us to Viridian City.

Until I heard a sound behind us. I turned around to see a Charmander running to catch up with us. I immediately recognized him as one of my dad's Charizard's Charmanders. In the years he had lived in the Charizard Valley, Charizard had mated with another Charizard and he was now living at the lab with her and their four Charmanders.

I guessed that this one had wandered into the lab and noticed that I was going on a journey and wanted to come along with me. When I asked him if he wanted to come and he nodded, I took out a pokeball and caught him easily. Now Jason and I both had a Charmander.

This seemed to get the "rival" side of our friendship surging for him and he challenged me by saying, "Adam, let's have a contest that will go on throughout our journey. Let's see who can train the stronger Charmander!"

"You're on!" I said, shaking his hand and accepting his challenge.

As we walked onward, my mind wandered to what happened one month ago.

_"Where are you going?" I asked my dad who was in the living room tying his shoe._

_"I'm going to train my Pokemon." he replied standing._

_My mom walked into the living room._

_"Where are you going to train?" she asked placing her hands on her hips._

_"Somewhere far away from Pallet Town. In one of the forests." My dad always preferred to train his Pokemon out in the wild far from any towns so nobody would notice, and so that his Pokemon would feel more comfortable about using their attacks out in the open without fear of anyone nearby getting hurt. Nobody knows exactly where he goes, though. He says it's a different place every time._

_"What time will you be back?"_

_"I'll be home before supper. I promise." Oh, dad. If there's one thing he never misses, it's a meal._

_My mom just nodded her head. My dad kissed her goodbye and ruffled my hair. _

_"Pikachu!" he called._

_Pikachu came into the living room and hopped onto his shoulder. He checked his Pokeball belt and then left the house._

_A few hours had passed._

_I sat in the living room watching my mom and dad in a contest called the Wallace Cup. I smelled supper and I was getting hungry._

_"Supper ready?" I asked._

_"Yes it is." my mom answered, walking into the living room._

_She sat down on the couch and looked at what I was watching._

_"Where's dad, then?" I asked, looking at her._

_"I'm not sure..." she said, looking out the window._

_I continued to watch the show. Soon my stomach was growling and I ate some of the food while on the couch watching. Dad still wasn't home and the Wallace Cup was close to ending._

_"Where is he?" I asked, getting up and removing the tape._

_I looked at the shows that were on and found nothing interesting. My mom walked into the kitchen and started cleaning the dirty dishes._

_I flipped to the news and stared at the screen. My plate dropped to the floor. My mom heard something crash against the floor and ran out of the kitchen and looked at the TV._

_"Massive destruction has occurred in a forest. We don't know what happened. All we know is we found a hat and an injured Pikachu at the scene. If any-" the reporter started, but my mom turned the TV off._

_"Get your shoes on." she said, with tears visible in her eyes._

_I quickly got my shoes on and we hurried out of the house. We went to the police and they took us to the scene._

_I stepped out of the car and blinked a lot of times._

_The scene was horrible and sickening. I felt my stomach flip and my dinner wanted to come back up._

_Burning trees scattered the area forming a square. I heard the cries of many Pokemon from deeper in the forest. I saw spots of blood scattered all around the ground._

_I walked around the area and felt very sick. Ashes were everywhere. I saw the faint traces of some footsteps and there were many different types of footprints. It looks like there had been dozens of people and their Pokemon involved in the attack._

_I turned around and saw Pikachu laying on the ground, injured severely. My dad's hat was on the ground with ashes from the destruction covering it slightly._

_I walked over towards where Pikachu lay._

_"If Pikachu is here...then dad was here." I said, walking a little way away from Pikachu._

_I looked down at my feet and I got sick at what I saw, and I ran from that spot. I had stood in a puddle of blood and I feared that it was my dad's._

_My mom kneeled down and picked up Pikachu and my dad's hat._

_"Come on, Adam." she said softly._

_I followed behind her and we hurried to a Pokemon Center to get Pikachu checked._

I frowned slightly at the memory. Officially, the police listed him as missing, not dead. They found no trace of remains of my dad, only minor amounts of the blood at the scene were discovered to be his. There was not enough evidence to confirm he was dead but still, even after a month of searching, they still had no leads on his whereabouts. So whoever or whatever attacked him wanted him alive. But still, I knew my dad wouldn't go down without a fight, so what could be so powerful that it could defeat my dad? Yes, he was outnumbered, but still...

"_I know now that my journey is just beginning. Not only am I trying to become a Pokemon Master and be the very best, like dad. I am trying to find dad and bring him home...no matter what! I will fulfill both. I can do it! After all, I have Pikachu and Bulbasaur and I'm going to get many more. Together, we will find dad and become champion! I also have Jason who can help. I will find dad and bring him home alive and safe. So don't worry, mom. We'll be a complete family again very soon! And we'll all be happy like we were before."_ I thought.

"Well, Viridian City isn't far. After Viridian City is Pewter City and we can challenge the gym leader." Jason said with a cocky grin.

"Yeah!" I cried, enthused. "Look out, Kanto! Here we come! Time for the next generation of Pokemon Trainers to step up to the plate and go for it!"

**Author's Note: We hope you enjoyed chapter one. Adam is on his way to find his father and compete in gyms to win badges, enter the Pokemon League, and someday become a Pokemon Master!**

**Will his dream come true? Will he find Ash? Is Ash even alive? Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	2. First Battle, First Capture!

Jason and I walked down the path that would lead us to Viridian City. Along the way, I pointed out the lake to Jason. The lake where my dad had jumped into on the first day of his journey to avoid a flock of angry Spearows. It was also the place where my dad had met Misty.

"Try not to anger any Spearows, or else we'll be in big trouble!" I warned Jason.

"Give me a break, Adam." he answered. "I have more sense than that! At least I don't throw rocks at Pokemon."

We shared a laugh at that memory. My dad had hit a Spearow with a rock in frustration when he couldn't catch a Pokemon. Of course, Jason and I would have more sense than that! It was memories like those that made me happy knowing that I hadn't inherited his beginner's bad luck. Well...not yet, anyway.

"Hey, Adam?" Jason said suddenly.

"What?" I asked, looking at him.

"How about a battle? Charmander vs Charmander?"

I thought for a few minutes. I then lowered my hand to my Pokeball belt.

"You're on!" I cried.

Jason nodded his head and we walked over to an open field. We stopped and went to opposite sides of the field.

"Charmander, let's go!" Jason said, tossing his Pokeball.

"Let's show them, Charmander!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Char! Charmander!" Jason's Charmander cried.

"Char, char!" my Charmander cried.

"You can have the first move, Adam." Jason said.

"Ember, Charmander!" I cried.

"Dodge and use Scratch!" Jason called out to his Pokemon.

"Ember again! Spin on your foot!"

To my surprise, Charmander was able to spin on his foot while using ember. Jason was shocked at the move, but recovered quickly.

"Use Smokescreen!" he said to his Charmander.

"Tail Whip! Use it to clear the smoke."

Charmander rapidly spun its tail around, stirring up the air and blowing away the smoke.

"Now, Charmander! Use Ember!" I commanded.

My Charmander stopped clearing the smoke and used ember. The attack nailed Jason's Charmander.

"Scratch, Charmander!" Jason cried.

His Charmander ran and landed a powerful scratch attack on mine.

We were trading blow for blow. This could go either way. "Charmander, use your Scratch right back at his!"

"Dodge and use Ember!"

Jason's Charmander dodged the attack and landed an Ember on mine.

"Charmander, use Ember!" I cried to my Pokemon.

"Ember, quick!" Jason countered.

The two embers hit each other and both Pokemon were not going to give up.

"Smokescreen, quick!" I cried.

Charmander did as I commanded.

"Jump! Use Smokescreen again!"

The area now had a good amount of smoke covering the field.

"Charmander, go towards Jason's Charmander and use Scratch!" I commanded.

Charmander was coming down to the ground and found Jason's Charmander, who couldn't see through the smoke. He hit Jason's Charmander who cried out in pain.

The smoke had now cleared and Jason's Charmander was breathing heavy. Mine had a few scratches, but his breathing was uneven slightly.

"Use scratch." I commanded.

"Do-" Jason started, but stopped as his Charmander got hit.

"Char...Charmander."

Jason's Charmander fell to the ground, defeated. Jason kneeled down and his Charmander looked up at him, sadly.

"Don't worry, you did good." Jason said, patting his head.

He returned his Charmander and stood up.

"Well Adam, so far you lead. One to zero. Good battle." Jason said.

"Thanks. You did very well." I said, returning Charmander and thanking him.

"I'm surprised your Charmander was able to pull off that spinning move. It was a contest move or it looked like one."

"Well, I've watched my mom in contests and it was just like her Buneary using ice beam while spinning so I thought of using it, too. And Charmander pulled it off on its first try!"

"Still, that's not fair..."

"Sorry." But I knew it was perfectly fair and normal for variations of contest moves to be used in battles. My dad used them all the time in his battles. My mom and her moves had influenced him in a big way back when they were travelling. In light of that, I guessed that Jason was just being a bit of a sore loser.

We started walking again and after a few more hours, a Pokemon - a Spearow, to be exact - came along and glared at Jason.

"Umm...is it GLARING at me?" Jason asked.

"Yep." I said, smart enough to back away. I did NOT want to piss off that Spearow like my dad had done.

"Oh, it's on!" Jason cried to the Flying Pokemon.

He walked a little ways back and released Charmander. He sprayed Charmander with a potion - since he was still weak from our battle - and Charmander was ready to fight.

The Spearow looked at Jason, waiting. Jason took out his Pokedex and pointed it at Spearow. That reminded me of my Pokedex and I did the same thing Jason did.

"Unlike Pidgey, Spearow has a terrible attitude. It is very wild and will sometimes attack other Pokémon and humans." the mechanical voice said.

I released my other Pokemon and recorded their data. I also did this just in case Jason needed some backup.

"Charmander, use Ember!" Jason commanded.

Charmander fired its Ember, which Spearow easily avoided. The Spearow came down and started using peck on Charmander.

Charmander cried out in pain as Spearow kept pecking its head.

"Use Scratch to get it off, Charmander!"

Charmander landed a few scratch attacks on Spearow and it backed off. It flew down again and pecked Charmander again, but this time flew off and came back. This continued for a good while until Jason figured out the pattern.

"Charmander, ember!"

Charmander started turning his head and using the move. Spearow got hit three times and as it flew, it suddenly had a burn.

"Alright!" Jason cried happily.

Spearow fell to the ground and the burn made it cry in pain.

"Go, Pokeball!" he cried tossing the Pokeball.

The Pokeball engulfed Spearow and it moved back and forth for a few seconds before stopping. Jason walked over to the Pokeball and retrieved it.

"Alright, I got a Spearow!" he said, hooking it to his belt.

"Yes, and it was a Spearow that glared at you." I pointed out, returning my Pokemon since we weren't in any danger anymore.

"It must've known that I was an awesome trainer." Jason bragged. I couldn't help but be reminded of his dad. "Well, becoming an awesome trainer, anyway."

"Let her out and see if she attacks you." I said, crossing my arms.

"Fine, I will."

Jason tossed the Pokeball in the air and Spearow appeared. It glanced at me with a bored look. It looked around and saw Jason. It glared and flew at him using peck on his head.

Jason cried out in pain and returned her. He rubbed his head and I winced when I saw a cut from Spearow's claw.

"You got a cut on your face." I said, pointing.

"I know, I know. Ow." Jason said, wincing when he talked.

His head wasn't hurt, but he had a scratch and it had made blood appear. Jason kneeled down and looked through his backpack for something. He sprayed something on his head and then stood back up.

"It'll be fine. Did it stop bleeding?" he asked.

I nodded my head at the question. He adjusted his backpack and we started back on our way. We were closer to the city now, but I saw a Pidgey and I wanted a flying type of my own.

"Stopping to battle?" Jason asked, already removing his bag.

I nodded my head and tossed Bulbasaur's Pokeball.

"Pidgey is a Flying Pokémon. Among all the Flying Pokémon, it is the gentlest and easiest to capture. A perfect target for the beginning Pokémon Trainer to test his Pokémon's skills. Pidgey's Gust power creates tornadoes. It also has a Sand Attack." the Pokedex said.

Bulbasaur waited and the Pidgey looked around seeming scared.

"No ya don't! Bulbasaur, use Tackle!"

The Pidgey was still looking around and got tackled by Bulbasaur.

"Use Tackle again."

Bulbasaur ran again, but Pidgey dodged and used Tackle back at it.

"Dodge, and use Leech Seed."

The seeds latched onto Pidgey and started taking its energy. I tossed a Pokeball and waited. The Pokeball moved twice and it stopped. I walked over to the Pokeball and picked it up.

"Alright, I got a Pidgey!" I said, attaching the Pokeball to my belt.

We walked on further. Many Pokemon were looking at us. I heard the faint sounds of Pokemon deeper in the forest going about their business. I saw the homes of some Pokemon and a few Rattata running off with berries in their mouths.

We walked through the forest, stopping occasionally to rest or to eat something. We stopped to record some of the data of Pokemon to the Pokedex, too.

"So what are we doing when we get to Viridian City?" I asked.

"Well, we'll rest up. Then head to Pewter City to challenge the gym leader..." Jason trailed.

"Wait, you have to have three Pokemon to challenge a gym." I said suddenly.

"That's what I just realized." Jason replied sadly.

"Don't worry. We'll wait for you to find that third Pokemon before _either _of us challenge the gym."

Jason cheered up and nodded his head.

"Alright!" he cried, enthused.

I then remembered that my dad had seen the Legendary Fire Pokemon Ho-oh on the first day of his journey as he was nearing Viridian City. My dad was very lucky and he had told me that it was a sign of great things to come for him.

I looked up at the sky...I saw nothing. It was apparent that the Legendary Pokemon were NOT smiling down upon me. What a bummer.

In the silence that filled the space, I could hear the faint sounds of the city.

"We're almost there. Hear the sounds from the city?" I asked.

Jason strained his ears and shook his head.

"No, I don't hear anything but the forest life." Jason replied.

I just nodded my head and we drew nearer to the city. After a walk of ten minutes at the most we were entering Viridian City.

"Is that..." Jason trailed pointing at someone standing on the sidewalk.

I followed his fingers and saw who he was pointing to.

"I think so..." I trailed uncertainly.

**Author's Note: So the boys have reached their first destination and each caught a new Pokemon along the way. What will they encounter next? And who is this familiar person they've recognized?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	3. Viridian City Stopover

**Author's Note:** **Here's chapter three! So, who was that person the boys recognized as they made it to Viridian City? Let's find out!**

I stared at a young adult. He had auburn hair that ended at his ears. He wore a green shirt with a white jacket with half sleeves, white pants with a green stripe, and white and green sneakers.

He had his back to Jason and I, so we weren't sure if he was who we thought he was.

"Is it him?" Jason asked, making me look at him.

"Only one way to find out." I replied and started walking towards the man.

_He looks like the gym leader. Is he? Is he actually one of my dad's rivals? _I thought as I walked towards the guy.

As Jason and I walked closer to the guy, he turned around as he heard us. I recognized him right away. It was dad's old friend and rival, Richie. He was the Gym Leader in Viridian City and my dad still kept in touch with him.

"Hello." he said plainly. But then he was taken aback as he looked at me. He knew who I was, since we'd met several times before, but I think it was Pikachu, who was on my shoulder, that gave me away.

"Adam! Long time, no see!" he said, giving me a pat on my shoulder. "And I see you've got Pikachu with you as well." he added, rubbing Pikachu's head.

He then noticed Jason, who was standing beside me. "And who's your friend?"

"This is my best friend, Jason. Professor Gary Oak's son." I told him.

"Nice to meet you." Jason greeted.

Ritchie shook his hand and gave a friendly, "Nice to meet you, too."

We stood awkwardly in the middle of the town with people looking at us strangely.

"How about we carry on this conversation in my gym? I think there's someone there who wants to see Pikachu, too." Ritchie said, breaking the silence.

"Sure." we replied.

"Pika! Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed. I think he knew who was waiting for him.

Richie lead us through the beautiful city that was enveloped in green all year.

We walked past the other townspeople who were going on with their normal lives saying "Hello", "Good afternoon", or "How about a battle, Richie?" as we continued through the town.

I saw little kids playing with one another, chasing Pokemon, or running from their parents who called for them.

Richie stopped in front of the gym. The Viridian City gym. A gym that had an old theme to it. It had white pillars, wooden doors leading into the gym, and the building was a light dust color. It had been refurbished several times throughout the years, but when Richie took over the gym, he decided to make the outside look like its original design.

Ritchie walked to the doors and pushed on the right door. It creaked as the door was slowly opened.

Jason and I followed Richie inside of the gym and stood frozen in place once inside.

_The Viridian City gym. I always dreamed of entering it when the time came. I never imagined it to look like this on the inside._ I thought as I looked around.

On the outside, you would never think the gym would look like this. The ground that was not the battlefield was black tiles, the walls were black, with flames that were green and orange lighting up the wall making a eerie feel to the gym. The field where Ritchie and the challenger would face off was a dark blue with green glowing lights going around the edges of it. Stone pillars held up the roof of the building.

"What kind of gym is this?" Jason asked, still shocked.

"Yeah...I thought it was a Ground-Type gym?" I asked, scratching my head.

"That is for you two to find out...later on." Ritchie replied with a chuckle.

He walked over to an area on the side and pressed a button. A table and chairs appeared and he sat down.

"Have a seat." he said, motioning to the table.

Jason and I slowly walked to the table and sat down.

"So Adam, I haven't been in touch with you and your mom since Ash disappeared. Have the police turned up any new leads on the whereabouts of your dad?" he asked.

I felt a pain in my chest when he said my dad's name.

"No, nothing yet." I said quietly, my voice barley audible. Even though Richie was dad's friend, I decided not to tell him that I was looking for dad. I couldn't let anyone know, or else they'd try to stop me or tell me it's too dangerous. But this was something I knew I had to do. Besides, my dad faced danger when he was my age, even greater danger than what I was expecting to face.

Richie seemed to notice the change in my mood so he changed the subject.

"Hey, Sparky!" he called.

I heard something running across the tile floor and I glanced around. I saw a Pikachu with a scruff of fur sticking out on its head running to the table.

"Hey Sparky, remember that Pikachu?" Richie asked, pointing at dad's Pikachu.

Sparky looked where its master's finger was pointing. Sparky let out a happy "Cha!" and Pikachu leaped off my shoulder, onto the tile floor. The two exchanged a tailshake and took off running, going somewhere to play, or catch up. I smiled, Pikachu hadn't looked that happy since before dad went missing.

"So what are you two travelling for?" Ritchie asked us.

"Well, we're both aiming to be Pokemon Masters." Jason and I answered proudly.

"That's good. You're your fathers' sons, alright."

"Richie, I remember my dad telling me stories. He said that Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket was once the gym leader." I said, remembering the story.

"That was true." Richie replied.

"I remember my dad telling me that Giovanni brought out Mewtwo and he lost even while using all of his Pokemon in battle." Jason said with a tint of anger in his voice.

"Yes, it is unfair when a gym leader uses Legendary Pokemon."

"How about a battle?" I asked Richie suddenly.

Richie looked up from whatever he was looking at.

"I would say yes, but I'm sorry. I don't really accept challengers unless they have a full team of Pokemon. I will battle you and Jason when the time comes and when you have six Pokemon." Ritchie replied politely.

"Oh, okay. Thanks anyway." I said, a little disappointed, since I was hoping for a badge.

I thought for a few minutes.

"Well Richie, when the time comes, I'll win that badge. So you'd better be ready for me when I come." I said with determination.

"Oh, I will be. Looking forward to it." Ritchie said calmly.

He looked towards the gym doors and at his watch.

"Well, I hate to ask you two to leave, but I have a challenger coming soon." Ritchie said, standing up.

Jason and I hopped down from our seats and watched as they went back under the floor, along with the table.

"Pikachu, come on! We've gotta go!" I called.

Pikachu came running up and leaped onto my shoulder.

"Well, later." Jason said, casting a wave over his shoulder.

"Bye." I said to Richie, waving and following Jason out of the gym.

"Let's head to the Pokemon Center. Our Pokemon need to be healed." Jason said, once we were walking around the town.

"Okay, then." I replied.

We walked into the Pokemon Center and headed to the counter.

"Hello. How may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked kindly.

"Can you heal our Pokemon?" Jason and I asked.

"Certainly. Just put your Pokeballs in the tray." Nurse Joy instructed.

I grabbed my Pokeballs and placed them in the tray and Pikachu hopped into the tray. Jason slid the tray to Nurse Joy once he placed his in the tray.

We sat on the seats in the lobby.

_When my dad was ten he ran into this very Pokemon Center with a severely wounded Pikachu. This is also where Team Rocket decided they were going to start stalking him and trying to steal Pikachu. I wonder if that Nurse Joy is related to the Nurse Joy who saved Pikachu?_ I thought to myself as I played the scene out. I had no idea how long I sat there, but it must have been a while because I was snapped out my thoughts by my friend.

"Adam?" Jason said suddenly.

"What?" I asked, coming back to the real world.

"The Pokemon are ready." he stated.

I nodded and walked to the counter. Pikachu hopped on my shoulder and I hooked my Pokeballs back to my belt.

I glanced at the clock and saw that it was only one in the afternoon.

"Are we staying or heading towards Pewter City?" I asked as I adjusted my bag.

"We'll camp outside if we don't make it. That fine with you?" Jason asked raising an eyebrow.

"That's fine with me. But let's get some lunch, first."

After we ate, we left the Pokemon Center and walked through the city.

Soon, we entered the Viridian Forest, which was lively with the sounds of Pokemon communicating and running around.

As we walked through the Viridian Forest, I thought back to the stories my dad had told.

He had told me about how Misty was terrified of the forest because of all the Bug-Type Pokemon. He also told me about how she always reminded him of her broken bike at different points in their journey.

I laughed at the memory.

"What's so funny?" Jason asked, confused by my laughter.

"Oh I was just remembering what my dad told me about Misty Waterflower." I answered.

"Misty...Misty...she was that fiery red-head right?"

"Yes."

"Oh, I remember your dad telling me about that. She was terrified of bugs and screamed when your dad..." Jason trailed trying to remember.

"When his Caterpie climbed up onto her!" I cried.

We both cried laughing in the forest.

After we finished laughing, I decided to carry on the conversation to help pass the time.

"My dad caught his first two Pokemon here in this forest. It was his Caterpie and Pidgeotto."

"Well, my dad made a bet that your dad wouldn't have caught a single new Pokemon by the time he reached Viridian City. My great-grandpa never did pay up for that bet he made." Jason replied.

I smirked and said, "And look where my dad is now: a Pokemon Master."

Pikachu nuzzled into my cheek and I rubbed under his chin, because I knew that's what he wanted.

After walking and talking for a few hours, I suggested, "How about we stop and let all our Pokemon play? We could all use a break."

Jason nodded and we sat down on the lush green grass and released all our Pokemon.

"Go and have some fun." I said.

Pikachu ran over to Charmander and Bulbasaur, who were running around. Jason's Charmander ran over and started running around with them.

Jason's Spearow looked at Jason who showed no fear. Spearow ignored Jason and flew over to Pidgey.

"Let's just hope they don't fight." Jason muttered.

"Agreed." I muttered. "Your Spearow can be quite temperamental."

I leaned back on my hands and elbows and looked at the sky.

_I just wish there was some way I knew where dad was. How will I find him? _I thought as I looked at the sky.

Jason ran a hand through his hair and watched the Pokemon play.

"Hey Adam, did your mom or dad ever contact Misty again?" Jason asked.

"I know they did when they got married. I heard your dad talking about visiting her one day. Did he ever?" I replied.

"Yes, he did. Her husband had ran off so she was left alone with a kid."

"Man...that sucks."

I glanced at our Pokemon and smiled slightly. It was nice to see everyone getting along. I looked at the sky yet again and yawned.

_A little nap won't hurt..._ I thought as I closed my eyes.

"Adam!" Jason cried.

I opened my eyes and looked around sleepily.

"What?" I asked, rubbing my eyes and yawning.

"It's dark now. We both dozed off." Jason said.

As soon as he said "we both dozed off", I noticed he looked half asleep. I leaned up on my elbows and saw our Pokemon knocked out of the world and in their world of dreams.

"Well we should just camp here." I said, yawning again.

Jason nodded his head and we started setting up a small camp. I went to gather wood while Jason laid out the sleeping bags and prepared some food which would be berries and bread.

_Berries and bread...we really need to learn how to cook._ I thought sadly.

I looked around and gathered some branches and twigs. The forest was a little creepy at night, but it didn't scare me. It's just the fact that I didn't have any Pokemon with me at the moment...that's what bothered me.

I looked at the amount of twigs I had and decided this was enough wood for a fire to last a while.

I walked back to where the camp was and saw Jason sitting on the ground.

I placed the wood down and Charmander used ember to light the fire.

Soon, the soft glow of the fire reflected off of mine and Jason's faces. Our Pokemon ate from their bowls which contained their food. Jason and I silently ate our bread and berries.

The forest life was dying down. The Pokemon were retreating to bed. The sounds of occasional Pokemon scurrying or shuffling in the forest filled the air.

"Return." I said, returning Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Pidgey.

"Return." Jason also said, returning Charmander and Spearow.

I laid down in my sleeping bag. I lay there with my hands under my head looking at the sky. Pikachu was lying by my head, watching the sky.

"Cha..." Pikachu said tiredly as he closed his eyes.

"It's okay, Pikachu." I muttered and closed my eyes.

"'Night, Jason." I muttered.

"'Night." Jason replied.


	4. In the Forest

I was woken up by the sounds of the forest coming to life. I sat up and rubbed my eyes, removing the sleep from them.

I glanced at Pikachu who was still sleeping peacefully, Jason was also still asleep.

_I'll let them sleep. I'll wake them in an hour. _I thought as I carefully climbed out of my sleeping bag and being careful not to wake or bump Pikachu, who would shock anything when surprised.

_I don't feel like being shocked every morning like dad was._

I dug through my bag quietly and found what I was looking for. I quickly scribbled a note to Jason and got up from the ground.

I walked into the forest, while they slept I was going to explore the forest a little more; after all we might be getting out of it today.

I walked through the forest stepping on small twigs which made young Pokemon flee.

"We aren't much farther from Pewter City. I think we need to practice first, besides Jason still needs his third Pokemon." I said, thinking out loud.

I walked a little further before turning around and heading back the way I had come.

As I walked back to where the camp was, I saw Jason awake.

"Well, you're up. I was gonna wake you in an hour." I said as I walked over to where Pikachu was.

Jason jumped, startled, since he hadn't heard me approach.

"I don't need to sleep. See any Pokemon while you were walking?" Jason asked as he popped a berry into his mouth.

"No, the forest is still coming alive. Many Pokemon were running off when I got near."

"Looks like they are scared of you." Jason said smirking.

"Shut up, Jason." I muttered, placing a few berries in my mouth.

Jason stood up and tossed a Pokeball.

"Char!" Charmander cried happily.

"Hey Charmander, want to practice?" Jason asked.

"Char...Charmander!"

"Alright!"

Jason walked a little ways from the campsite so he wouldn't damage the camp supplies. I stayed sitting on the grass, planning to watch the practice unless challenged me to a battle.

"Okay! Charmander, maybe today - and if not today, then it'll be soon - but we are going to be challenging the Pewter City gym." Jason explained to the Fire-type Pokemon.

Jason continued to talk and soon he stood back up.

"Charmander use scratch on that big rock!"

I watched as Charmander ran at the rock and scratched it.

"Char!" Charmander cried holding its right paw.

"Aw Charmander, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking." Jason said apologizing to his partner.

Jason sat down for a long time.

_He needs to teach Charmander Metal Claw. He needs a good attack since he only has Charmander and Spearow right now. Unless he gets a Water or Grass Pokemon. He'll figure it out...I hope. _I thought.

Jason rose from the ground.

"I know what you need to learn! Charmander we've gotta get Metal Claw working!" Jason cried.

"Way to go." I muttered, already thinking ahead of him.

"Hey, Adam! How about a battle? You know, get us ready for the gym battle?" Jason asked, smirking.

"You're on!" I cried standing up and running over to where he was.

Pikachu ran behind me and I stopped at the opposite side of where Jason was.

"Charmander, you're first." Jason said to his partner.

Jason's Charmander took the field and I thought for a few minutes.

_Hmm...If I use Charmander, then that'll be working on the challenge we made. If I use Bulbasaur, I could get Bulbasaur stronger but I wouldn't have the type advantage. If I used Pidgey I would have an advantage in the air. Hmm he's going to learn metal claw by this battle, I know that's what he wants to accomplish with this. Wh-_I thought, but was jarred back to the real world when Jason called my name.

"What?" I asked, looking at him.

"You okay? You just zoned out and stared at the trees." Jason explained.

"Yeah I was just thinking about who to use." I answered.

I glanced at my Pokeballs and grabbed one, and tossed it into the air.

"Bulbasaur, go!" I cried, even though Bulbasaur's Pokeball was in the air already.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur cried.

"Hmm...kinda thought you would use Charmander. You have a type disadvantage." Jason said with a questioning look in his eyes.

"Hey, I take risks. Besides, my dad never let a type disadvantage stop him! Who's first?" I asked.

"You, since I challenged you."

"Bulbasaur, use Tackle!" I commanded.

Bulbasaur started running towards Charmander.

"Stop Bulbasaur in its tracks with Ember!" Jason commanded.

I watched as Bulbasaur was stopped and hurt by Ember.

"Bulbasaur, Leech Seed!"

"Dodge it quick!"

Charmander almost got seeded, but dodged the move successfully.

"Tackle!"

"Scratch!"

Both Pokemon ran at one another and the moves collided and both Pokemon got hurt.

I was thinking up an attack when I heard Bulbasaur say its name quickly. I glanced up and saw Charmander's paw glowing.

"Jason, that's Metal Claw!" I cried, shocked.

"Alright, Charmander! Do it!" Jason cried.

"Dodge it!"

Bulbasaur wasn't able to dodge in time and got hit full on.

"Bulbasaur!" I cried.

Dust had been stirred up and when it cleared, Charmander was still standing but Bulbasaur lay on the ground, fainted.

"Oh, Bulbasaur." I muttered.

I removed Bulbasaur's Pokeball and returned it.

"You did good, now take a rest." I said and placed it back on my belt.

"I'm glad that your Charmander learned the move, but it still needs perfection." I said as I removed another Pokeball from my belt. "So let's keep fighting! Charmander, go!" I shouted, tossing the Pokeball.

"Char! Char!" Charmander cried happily.

"Alright, time for Charmander and Charmander, Round 2!" Jason cried.

"First move, Jason." I said, since he was waiting for me.

"Oh yeah, right. Charmander, use Scratch!"

"Smokescreen."

"Don't fall for that again! Use Ember at that flame!"

I nodded, knowing that Jason had figured out the Smokescreen strategy.

"Charmander, jump and use Ember!" I cried as I saw the other Ember come through the Smokescreen

Charmander jumped just in time to avoid the Ember and used Ember on Jason's Charmander.

"Metal Claw, Charmander!"

"Charmander, Smokescreen!"

I saw Jason smirk before the smoke covered the area where the Pokemon battled.

I was shocked when Jason's Charmander emerged from the smoke and hit Charmander with Metal Claw.

"Char!" Charmander cried out in pain.

I saw my Charmander fall to the ground, fainted.

"You did good. Take a rest." I said returning Charmander.

"Alright, Charmander. You did it!" Jason cried praising his partner.

He returned Charmander and stood back up.

"Looks like we are tied now. One to one!" he cried.

_...And this is where his ego, that he got from his dad, comes in. _I thought.

"Charmander is getting better with Metal Claw." I said.

"Yeah, I know. He was awesome today!" Jason cried.

I shook my head at my best friend.

"So what kind of Pokemon are you going to catch?" I asked, bringing up an important question.

"Well, we're in the Viridian Forest. I think I might look for a bug-type..." Jason trailed uncertainly.

"Well, we don't have to get to Pewter City today. We still have to practice and find your third Pokemon."

"Yeah, still I'm slowing you down."

"No your not. Dude, you're my best friend. Do you not remember the promise we made when we were five?" I asked him seriously.

"Of course I remember."

"I'm keeping that promise."

_Five years ago..._

_Jason and I were in the gardens that kept my dad's Pokemon. We sat under the biggest tree, just relaxing since we had just ran around the field for a while._

_"You know what?" I said suddenly._

_"What?" Jason asked._

_"Let's make a promise."_

_"A promise?"_

_"Yeah. When we turn ten and get Pokemon, we'll be travelling partners all through Kanto! We'll never leave each other 'cause we we'll be friends forever!" I cried._

_Jason shook his head._

_"We won't be friends. We'll be bros. forever!" he cried._

"Fine."

"Bros. forever, right?" I asked laughing.

"Right!"

"If we don't get to Pewter City today, how will my Pokemon be healed?" I asked, realizing a problem.

"Don't worry, I've got tons of potions." Jason said removing two potions from his bag.

"Thanks, Jason."

I called out Bulbasaur and Charmander. Once they were out, I sprayed the potion on their wounds.

"Let's head into the forest and we can look for my new Pokemon." Jason said, enthused.

I nodded my head and returned Charmander and Bulbasaur. We packed up our campsite and headed into the forest.

We walked through the forest for quite a while until Jason stopped walking suddenly.

He removed his Pokedex and pointed it at the Butterfree that was resting on a tree branch.

"Butterfree, the Butterfly Pokémon. Butterfree is the evolved form of Metapod. The scales covering its wings help it to shed water." the mechanical voice said.

Jason removed Spearow's Pokeball from his belt and tossed it.

"Okay, Spearow. Let's do this." Jason said to his Pokemon.

Spearow looked at Jason and then saw Butterfree, the Pokemon it would be battling.

"Spearow use peck!" Jason commanded.

Spearow flew at Butterfree, who hadn't noticed us, and landed the hit.

"Oops...I thought it noticed us." Jason said, feeling sorry for the unexpected attack on it.

The Butterfree flew high in the sky and used Poison Powder.

"Dodge it! Don't get hit!" Jason cried.

Spearow dodged the attack and waited for the command.

"Use Peck and keep it going!"

Spearow started pecking Butterfree multiple times, but when Spearow came to strike again, Butterfree dodged and made a Stun Spore that hit Spearow.

"Spearow!" Jason cried as Spearow tried to stay in the air.

Spearow landed on the ground unable to fight until the Stun Spore wore off.

"Go, Pokeball!" Jason cried tossing a Pokeball after noticing Butterfree was beaten up.

The Pokeball engulfed Butterfree and moved back a forth a few seconds before stopping. Those super-effective Peck attacks must've really done a number on Butterfree.

"Alright! We did it, Spearow!" Jason cried as he picked up Butterfree's Pokeball.

Jason kneeled down next to Spearow and removed a stun heal and sprayed it on Spearow.

"Thank you, Spearow. You did great. Take a rest." Jason said, returning the bird Pokemon.

Jason attached the Pokeball back to his belt.

"Well, I have my third Pokemon. Should we head to Pewter City now or wait?" Jason asked, facing me.

"I guess we can head towards Pewter City. If we get there today we can rest in the Pokemon Center." I replied.

_Pewter City is where Brock lives. He used to be the gym leader and his dad took over once Brock left to travel with dad. Who did dad say the gym leader was now? I wonder if I'll see Brock in Pewter City. _I thought.

"Who's the gym leader in Pewter City again?" Jason asked suddenly.

"I don't remember. My dad told me, but I can't remember who it is." I answered, scratching the back of my head.

"I can't, either. Dad told me so many times since I asked about every gym leader." Jason said laughing.

"Isn't someone there a friend of our families?" Jason asked.

"Yes, it's Brock the Pokemon doctor. You have memory loss or something. You don't remember many people."

"Shut up. I know who he is."

I just shook my head at him and moved a low hanging brach out of the way.

"Will we make it to Pewter City by tonight?" Jason asked.

"I don't know...maybe." I replied.

**Author's Note: Sorry for not updating in over a month, but the story wasn't doing very well, according to the lack of comments. But the story has been getting some new reviews recently, so we've decided to continue!**

**What awaits the boys in Pewter City? Who is the new Gym Leader? How will their first gym battles go?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	5. Jason's First Gym Battle

Jason and I were currently out of the forest. The dusty path covered our shoes in dust as we walked towards Pewter City.

"How long is this?" Jason asked, looking at the endless dusty road ahead of us.

"I don't know. It shouldn't be much farther, we've been walking for...thirty minutes...maybe." I replied, trying to figure out how long we'd been in here.

"Are you sure we aren't going in circles?"

"Jason, it's a straight path. How could we be going in circles?"

Jason muttered something and just looked down at his shoes. I knew he felt stupid now. Like his mom, he often talked without thinking first.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried, pointing his paw straight.

I looked up and saw a city creeping into view over the horizon.

"We made it!" I cried.

Jason took off running, happy to be near civilization again. I ran behind him, also happy to reach our destination.

Jason stood right outside the entrance to Pewter City and I slowed down and stood beside him. We took it all it.

"Well, let's go." I said after a minute, and walked into the city.

Jason followed me and we walked through the town. We located the Pokemon Center with ease and went in.

"Hello. May I help you?" Nurse Joy asked kindly.

"Yes, we would like our Pokemon healed." Jason said, motioning to himself and I.

"Certainly. Just place your Pokeballs into this tray." Nurse Joy instructed as she placed the metal tray on the counter.

Pikachu hopped onto the tray and we placed our Pokeballs on the tray too.

"We also need a room." I said before she walked off.

Nurse Joy nodded and walked to the machine with the tray. She placed the Pokeballs in it and walked back to the front of the counter.

"Trainer cards please." she instructed.

We slid our trainer cards to her and she typed in various information.

"There you are. Adam Ketchum and Jason Oak. You two have Room Ten. Have a nice stay. Your Pokemon will be ready in a few minutes." she said, handing both of us a card.

"Thank you," I said, putting the card in my pocket.

"Thanks," Jason said.

While I waited for my Pokemon, I glanced at the television which was currently showing the news.

"Well, folks! It's that time of year again! It's time for Pokemon Coordinators to sign up! Hurry and get your ribbon case and contest pass! Hurry! Hurry!" Lilian announced.

Some of the people watching became excited, saying to each other that they had already signed up and were looking forward to it. My dad had competed in Pokemon contests a few times, but I decided that kind of stuff just wasn't for me, so I ignored the outbursts of the people watching.

"Adam, Jason, your Pokemon are ready." Nurse Joy said suddenly.

I tore my eyes from the television and walked to the counter. I removed my Pokeballs and put them back on my belt. Jason did the same. Pikachu jumped on my shoulder again.

"It's five right now. Let's battle tomorrow." Jason said.

"Okay...fine with me." I replied.

We walked to the rooms area and found our room. We threw our bags onto one of the two beds and sat on them.

"I don't know about you, but I'm hungry for some real food. You coming?" Jason asked, standing up from the bed he sat on.

"Nah, I'm not hungry right now." I replied, a little distracted.

I saw Jason give me a weird glance and he hesitated before walking out of the room.

I sighed and flopped down onto the bed. I removed my sneakers so I could lay on the bed and not get dirt on it.

_Where are you, dad? How will I find you? I just need a clue._ I thought, frowning.

I glanced at Pikachu who was laying at the foot of the bed, curled up and napping.

_If only I could see what Pikachu saw. What he experienced that day. What exactly happened. Who caused this. Who took him! Who wounded Pikachu so severely! _

I sat up, frustrated with myself and what happened that day.

"If only I knew..." I muttered sadly. I had promised myself that I would find dad, but now it dawned on me: I had no idea where to start looking or who to ask. The police had already released all the info. that they had to mom and I. Maybe I just had to wait for a sign or something, but who knows how long that would take?

After a while, I slid off the bed and put my shoes back on. I headed to the cafeteria to eat since I was slightly hungry. As I walked down the halls and towards the cafeteria I heard some of the other people talking as they saw me.

"Is that the Champion?" one person asked as I passed.

"He sure looks like Master Ketchum." another said.

"Nah, he's older than that kid." another replied.

I quickened my pace and pushed open the metal doors that lead to the cafeteria. I spotted Jason sitting at a table by himself.

I grabbed a tray and got into a line for a burger. I paid for my food and walked over to where Jason sat.

"Dude, you okay?" Jason asked as soon as I sat down.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking." I replied, unwrapping the burger.

Jason just nodded and let the matter drop. He scooped the last bit of what I assumed was pasta and ate it.

I was halfway through the burger.

"Maybe we should buy some food and take it with us." Jason said.

"You can't do that. The Pokemon Center doesn't allow that." I replied and took another bite.

Jason sighed and went to throw his trash away. I didn't want the rest of the burger cause its once delicious taste turned into the taste of cardboard.

I got up and threw away my trash and followed Jason out of the cafeteria.

Once we were back into our room, Jason gathered his hygiene items and went to the showers.

I felt grimy, but I didn't go. Instead I removed my shoes, my jacket, my hat, and my socks, and placed them neatly on my backpack. I then climbed under the covers and laid down. Pikachu woke up from the shift of the bed and climbed up to the pillow and laid down. Suddenly, I remembered something.

"You need to eat, you didn't eat." I scolded Pikachu.

"Cha." Pikachu said, closing his eyes.

I sighed and was going to get out to get him food, but Pikachu's cheeks threatened me with a thunderbolt. Pikachu was mocking me, "Move and you get shocked." is what he was saying.

I sighed and placed my head on the pillow. I quickly fell asleep and didn't even known when Jason returned.

The next morning, I opened my eyes to find the room filled with sunlight. I glanced around the room and saw Jason asleep in his bed. Pikachu's eyes opened and looked at me.

"Hungry?" I asked him.

He shook his head. I leaned down and retrieved my backpack. I removed some Pokemon food and handed it to Pikachu after opening it.

"Chu." he said stubbornly.

_He doesn't want Pokemon food. He wants ketchup._ I thought.

"Sorry, but no ketchup with your food until lunch." I said.

Pikachu just looked at me, but he ate.

"I'll be back in a little while." I said, rubbing Pikachu's head and getting off the bed.

I gathered my own hygiene items and left the room to get a shower.

I walked through the halls, feeling refreshed since I had showered. I reached into my pocket for my key and paled. I left the key in the room.

"Great, just great." I muttered.

I knocked on the door and waited. After waiting a few moments, Jason didn't come to the door. I knocked again, but louder this time.

I pressed my ear to the door trying to figure out if he was up. I waited again, but still Jason didn't come to the door.

I knew if I yelled people would complain since many were still asleep, like Jason was.

I kicked the door and heard a groan come from the room. The door was unlocked and Jason opened it a second later.

"Dude?" he asked annoyed.

"Sorry, forgot my key." I said stepping in.

Jason muttered something and sat on his bed.

"You can go back to sleep you know." I said.

"I know, but we have gym battles to get done." he muttered as he rubbed his eyes.

I only nodded my head and placed the half-finished Pokemon food back into my backpack.

Jason was already dressed so I guessed he fell asleep in his clothes.

"Let's go!" he cried, getting off of his bed.

He stumbled slightly and regained his balance before he fell onto the floor.

"Nice one." I said, laughing.

"Shut up, Adam." he said, grabbing his backpack.

I grabbed my own backpack and Pikachu hopped onto my shoulder.

We exited our room and left the Pokemon Center. We walked through Pewter City until we were in front of the gym.

"Well, let's go." I said, stepping towards the doors.

As soon as I stepped towards the doors, someone walked out and collided with me.

I groaned and sat up.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize someone was coming in." a very familiar voice said.

Once my eyes focussed, I saw a man who had to be in his late twenties early thirties. He had brown hair that was spiked, dark skin, and slits for eyes. He wore a doctor jacket over his orange shirt and tan pants.

"Okay, either I'm seeing an old friend, or his son." the man said.

I stood up and Pikachu hopped back onto my shoulder.

"Long time no see." I said, feeling a pain in my back since I landed on my back.

"Yes, it has been some time, Adam."

"How have you been, Brock?" I asked.

"Good. What about you?"

"Holding up."

"How have you been, Jason?" Brock asked.

"Good...I guess." Jason replied.

"Well, I guess you two are here to challenge the gym?" Brock asked.

"You bet!" we cried.

"Pikachu, how have you been?" Brock asked.

"Pika. Chu." Pikachu said.

"Well, good luck. I have to get back to the Pokemon Center. Just as a heads-up, the Pokemon in the gym just had a checkup."

Brock placed a hand on my shoulder before leaving.

"Okay, so who took over the gym if Brock is the doctor?" Jason asked.

"Well, we'll find out." I replied, stepping up at the doors again.

We walked into the Pewter City gym. The gym on the outside was just like dad told me. The inside had changed a little.

The battlefield was a dirt field with darker brown tiles covering around the field. The bleachers were just regular bleachers. There were stadium lights that were shining on the field, but the gym leader was nowhere to be seen.

"Hello?" I asked into the empty battlefield.

"We're here to challenge the gym leader." Jason stated.

A noise came from the bleachers and I glanced towards the bleachers. I spotted a guy who was either in his late teens or somewhere around his twenties.

He has brown spiked hair, slit eyes, and a dark skin tone. He wore a dark blue shirt, tan shorts, and blue and white sneakers.

"I'm Forrest, Pewter's City's Gym Leader! I believe in ROCK hard defense! That's why all my Pokemon are Rock-type. Still want to challenge me?" the guy now known as Forrest said, walking down the stairs of the bleachers.

Jason and I nodded, determined to get our first gym badges.

"Okay. Who's first, then?" Forrest asked, walking to his side of the field.

"You go ahead, Jason." I said, already going to the bleachers. I wanted to watch and see how the gym leader battled and which Pokemon he would use, so I would be more prepared for my battle.

Jason nodded his head and walked to his side of the field.

"Okay, the rules are simple. Three Pokemon only. The challenger is allowed substitutions only. The loser will be whoever has no Pokemon left at the end of the battle." Forrest explained dully.

"Okay, then." Jason replied.

A referee hurried to the middle of the field with two flags.

"The battle between the Gym Leader, Forrest and the challenger, Jason will now begin!" he cried.

"Steelix, let's show them!" Forrest cried, throwing his Pokeball. A giant grey rock snake appeared. This was my first time seeing a Steelix up close. I had seen pictures and knew that they were among the longest Pokemon in existence, but this was amazing!

"Charmander, go!" Jason cried tossing his Pokeball.

"Steel! Steelix." Steelix said to Charmander.

"Char! Charmander!" Charmander cried happily.

"Go ahead, Jason." Forrest said.

"Alright, Charmander! Use Smokescreen!" Jason commanded.

Smoke covered the field and I watched, hoping he wasn't going to use my technique. I was planning on saving it for my battle with Forrest. If he saw it now and figured out a way to counter it, it would be useless to me!

"Use Sandstorm, Steelix." Forrest ordered.

A sandstorm started, which blew away all the smoke, and the two moves cancelled each other out. Forrest, Jason, the referee, and Charmander shielded their eyes as best as they could.

"Now, Steelix! Use Bind!" Forrest cried.

Steelix lunged at Charmander, its tail trying to grab the Fire-type.

"Dodge! Then use Metal Claw!" Jason cried.

Charmander was able to avoid, but Steelix kept on trying to capture Charmander so he could bind him.

Charmander stopped dodging and jumped right onto Steelix's tail, bounced off, and used Metal Claw right on Steelix's head.

"Alright, Charmander! Now, Ember!" Jason cried.

Steelix was still in pain from the Metal Claw. The Ember hit Steelix, who cried out in pain.

"Steelix, use Rock Throw!" Forrest cried.

"Dodge it, Charmander! Use Smokescreen again!"

Steelix's Rock Throw started, but Charmander's Smokescreen covered the field. A cry was heard, coming from Charmander.

When the smoke cleared, Steelix looked the same but Charmander was now breathing hard since the Rock Throw had hit him. Being a smaller, weaker Pokemon than Steelix and Rock-type attacks being super-effective, Charmander didn't look like it could take another hit!

"Finish it with Iron Tail!"

"Charmander, dodge! Then use Ember!"

Steelix's Iron Tail just missed Charmander. Charmander quickly spun around and jumped up to Steelix's head and used Ember. But instead of embers coming out of his mouth, a long searing beam of flames was released instead! That was no Ember, it was Flamethrower! Charmander had learned a new move, and just in time!

Steelix cried out in pain and fell towards the ground.

"Steelix is unable to battle! The winner is Charmander!" the referee cried.

Forrest returned his fallen Pokemon, praising it before placing the Pokeball back on his belt.

"Good job, Charmander. Take a rest." Jason said, returning his partner.

"Not bad. Nice job using Charmander's speed to your advantage, using it to dodge all of those attacks. And a stroke of luck that it happened to learn Flamethrower in mid-battle. Geodude, go!" Forrest said, throwing another Pokeball.

"Butterfree, go!" Jason cried, throwing his Pokeball.

"Geo!" Geodude cried.

"Free!" Butterfree cried, fluttering happily in the sky. Jason had an advantage over Forrest, with Butterfree being in the air, and out of reach.

"Butterfree, use Silver Wind!" Jason cried, as Butterfree released a wave of silvery gusts.

"Dig, quick!" Forrest cried.

But Geodude wasn't fast enough and got hit by Butterfree's Silver Wind. It seemed that Jason was once again taking advantage of the Rock Pokemon's lack of speed. He had to strike fast, strike hard.

"Now, Butterfree! Use Supersonic!"

Butterfree used the move and everyone covered their ears from the ear piercing, high pitched sound. Geodude was now confused.

"Geodude, snap out of it!" Forrest cried, but Geodude was still confused, and began hurting itself in confusion.

"Silver Wind, again!"

The Silver Wind hit Geodude and the attack snapped it out of confusion.

"Use Sandstorm! Try to knock Butterfree out of the sky!" Forrest commanded, knowing he would have a better chance if Butterfree was on the ground.

"Butterfree, flap your wings quickly! Blow away the sand!" Jason cried shielding his eyes as the sandstorm hit.

Butterfree fought the sandstorm to the best of its ability, but it was starting to lose as its stamina began to wane away.

"Butterfree, Silver Wind!"

Butterfree started using its Silver Wind, which added more power in pushing away the sandstorm, but the sandstorm was still going on. Eventually, the sandstorm stopped and when it did, the Silver Wind which Butterfree was still using hit Geodude, full force.

"Geo!" Geodude cried out.

"Finish it with Confusion!" Jason shouted.

The Psychic attack ended the battle as Geodude fainted.

"Geodude is unable to battle! Butterfree wins!" said the ref.

Forrest returned his Pokemon and thanked it.

"Good job, Butterfree!" Jason cried, returning it.

"I must admit, your Butterfree is one tough Pokemon, being able to withstand my attack for that long. I didn't think I would be in this kind of a jam. Let's see how well you do against my strongest Pokemon!" Forrest said, grabbing his final Pokeball.

"Rhyperior, let's do this!" Forrest cried, throwing his last Pokeball.

"Spearow hasn't battled yet. Is Jason using her? He should use Butterfree and Spearow to weaken Rhyperior to the best of their abilities, then use Charmander and his Metal Claw." I muttered to myself.

Jason seemed stumped about who to use. Rhyperior seemed like the toughest one yet! He glanced and grabbed a Pokeball.

"Spearow, go!" Jason cried.

Spearow flapped high above Rhyperior.

"Spearow, use Pursuit!" Jason cried.

I was shocked. I didn't know that Spearow knew Pursuit. The attack hit Rhyperior, but did little damage.

"Megahorn!" Forrest cried.

"Dodge it quick, Spearow!" Jason cried.

Spearow went to dodge, but didn't fly away fast enough. Megahorn hit Spearow and she fell towards the ground, fainted after only one hit.

"Spearow is unable to battle. Rhyperior wins!" announced the referee.

Jason returned Spearow before she hit the ground and said, "You did good, Spearow."

"Butterfree, let's go!" Jason cried, throwing Butterfree's Pokeball.

"Use Dig, Rhyperior." said Forrest.

Rhyperior went under the ground and Butterfree just fluttered above the field, waiting.

"Sleep Powder in the hole!" Jason cried.

Butterfree flew over the hole and the Sleep Powder was released into the hole.

"Now!" Forrest cried.

Rhyperior came out from under the ground, but it looked drowsy and disoriented. It suddenly closed its eyes and collapsed, emitting a snoring kind of noise.

"Sleeping." I muttered to myself as I watched.

Jason seemed to be thinking for a minute.

"Return!" Jason cried returning Butterfree.

He threw Charmander's Pokeball saying, "Charmander, I choose you again!"

Charmander reappeared and Jason acted fast. "Metal Claw, quick!"

Charmander hit Rhyperior with the Metal Claw.

"Wake up!" Forrest cried. But Rhyperior remained motionless.

"Keep up the Metal Claws!"

Multiple attacks hit Rhyperior who was still asleep. With Steel-type attacks being super-effective against Rock Pokemon, Rhyperior was taking a lot of damage and didn't even know it!

"Come on! Wake up, Rhyperior!" Forrest yelled. Upon hearing this, Rhyperior finally woke up.

"Use Horn Drill! Finish it quickly!" Forrest shouted, looking desperate to get back in the fight!

"Use Smokescreen while running!" Jason countered.

Charmander used Smokescreen while it ran towards Rhyperior. Rhyperior got confused by the smoke and couldn't see. It used the move where it last thought Charmander was. The smoke cleared and Charmander was nowhere to be found.

But I noticed something that Forrest didn't. There was a small glowing red spot on the battlefield. I laughed softly to myself when I figured out what Jason had done.

"Rhyperior-" Forrest started, but stopped when the ground under Rhyperior started to break.

"Do it, Charmander! Metal Claw!" Jason cried.

Charmander's Metal Claw broke through the ground and then hit Rhyperior as Charmander leaped up from underground.

Rhyperior fainted after crying out in pain.

"Rhyperior is unable to battle! Charmander wins! The victor of this battle is the challenger, Jason!" the referee cried.

Forrest seemed shocked by the way he had lost, but returned his Pokemon.

"Good job, Charmander!" Jason cried, hugging his partner.

I walked down to the ground to congratulate him. He stood back up when Forrest approached him.

"Well Jason, I must say, the technique you used was very different. What did you do?" Forrest asked.

"Charmander hid underground in the tunnel Rhyperior dug with Dig. Since Charmander doesn't know dig, he used his Flamethrower to weaken the rocky ground, making it easy to break through." Jason replied.

"Well Jason, you won. Here is the Boulder Badge." Forrest said presenting the cushion that held the badge on it.

Jason picked up the badge and looked at it.

"Alright, the Bolder badge!" he cried, holding it up in the air.

He then removed his gym badge case and put it inside.

"I will battle you tomorrow." Forrest said, looking at me. "The Pokemon need a rest."

"I got my first gym badge." Jason said proudly as we walked back to the Pokemon Center.

"Yeah. I must say the last round was awesome. Did everything really come naturally to you?" I asked.

"Yeah it did. I wasn't completely sure Charmander could pull it off, but he did." Jason replied.

I just nodded my head and thought about what I was going to do to win and get my first badge.

"You made up for your type disadvantages like Fire and Flying types by using your speed to your advantage." I said to him.

"His Pokemon may have been more powerful physically, but you can't hit what you can't catch." Jason replied. "With your battle tomorrow, you've got a tough act to follow."

"Well, I have a Bulbasaur, a Grass Pokemon. And Pikachu has had success when battling Rock Pokemon, too. I should be fine." I said confidently.

**Author's Note: So Jason has won his first gym badge. How will Adam fare in his battle?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	6. Adam's First Gym Battle

I was woken up by a Thunderbolt from Pikachu. I groaned and looked at him.

"Pika…"

"I bumped you…didn't I?"

"Pi!"

"Sorry."

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and slid off, Jason was already up.

"You slept late. Are you ready for your battle?" Jason asked as he tied his sneaker.

"As I'll ever be!" I answered, enthused. I had slept late because I had spent most of yesterday after Jason's battle training my Pokemon. Specifically Charmander, since he needed to learn Flamethrower, just like Jason's Charmander did. It was the only way he could stand up to Steelix.

"You won't be able to beat what Charmander and I pulled off." Jason boasted.

Oh, Jason the bragger. Just like what my dad had told me about Gary. Must run in the family. I just rolled my eyes and walked out of the room and towards the bathrooms. When I returned to the room, I grabbed my bag and slung it across my back. I attached my Pokeballs to my belt.

"Ready?" I asked.

"You should be asking yourself that." Jason replied and got off the bed.

We checked out of the Pokemon Center since we planned to head towards Cerulean City after I won my badge today, passing through Mt. Moon on the way there.

We walked through Pewter City and headed towards the gym.

"Hang on, I'll be right back." I said, and walked off without waiting for a reply from Jason.

I was behind one of the houses in Pewter City, but I wasn't trespassing...or I hope I wasn't.

"Go!" I cried tossing two Pokeballs.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur said.

"Char! Char!" Charmander cried happily.

Pikachu hopped off of my shoulder and stood next to the other two.

"Well, today is the day of our first gym battle. Are you guys ready?" I asked, giving my team a pep talk. My dad had always given his Pokemon pep talks before any major battles.

"Pika! Pikachu!" Pikachu cried as his cheeks had electricity flaring from them to show his enthusiasm.

"Char!" Charmander cried.

"Bulba. Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur said nodding.

"That's the spirit! We can do it. Now return," I said, and returned Bulbasaur and Charmander, with Pikachu jumping on my shoulder again.

I walked back towards the gym and didn't see Jason, so he must have gone inside already.

I walked into the gym and spotted Jason sitting on the bleachers and Forrest on his side of the field.

"So, let's see if you can top your friend's battle. Are you ready?" Forrest asked as he took his side of the field.

"Oh, yes." I said confidently, taking my side of the field.

The referee hurried to the middle of the field with his two flags.

"The battle between Gym Leader, Forrest and the challenger, Adam will now begin!"

"Geodude let's go!" Forrest cried, tossing a Pokeball.

"Geo!" Geodude cried giving a determined look.

Without hesitating, I grabbed the Pokeball and tossed it.

"Let's show them, Bulbasaur!" I cried as the Pokeball opened.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur cried, determined. I had the advantage with a Grass Pokemon.

"Go ahead, Adam." Forrest said.

"Bulbasaur, use Leech Seed!" I commanded.

"Geodude, dodge and then use Sandstorm!" Forrest commanded.

_Bulbasaur's in trouble with Sandstorm. _I thought.

But luckily, Geodude wasn't fast enough and the Leech Seed hit it. Vines surrounded Geodude's body, instantly draining energy and healing Bulbasaur, even though it hadn't taken any damage yet.

"Now Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf!"

Bulbasaur was able to hit Geodude, taking some big damage.

"Geodude, get out of there with Dig!" said Forrest.

Geodude made a hole underground and I smirked. I had learned how to deal with Dig after watching what Jason did yesterday. It seemed that letting him go ahead of me had paid off for me, just as I had hoped.

"Bulbasaur, charge your Solarbeam!" Bulbasaur began gathering energy. Just as he had finished, Geodude burst from under the ground right underneath Bulbasaur, hitting him and knocking him into the air.

Geodude was back on the battlefield now, and took some more damage from Leech Seed, which healed some of the damage Bulbasaur had taken from Dig. As for Bulbasaur himself, the Dig had knocked him into the air and he was spinning in midair, disoriented. But I knew how to recover.

"Bulbasaur, spin in midair! Spin in the opposite direction that you're spinning now!" This was a simple contest move that I had seen my mom do a hundred times before. And by twisting his body to spin in the opposite direction, Bulbasaur was able to get his bearings and stop spinning altogether. He was now flying directly upward with his body right side up.

"Now, fire your Solarbeam!" I shouted. Bulbasaur blasted Geodude, engulfing the Rock Pokemon's body with the energy. When the attack faded, Geodude had fainted.

"Geodude is unable to battle! Bulbasaur wins!" the referee cried.

"Alright Bulbasaur, you did it! Take a rest." I said as I returned him for a rest.

"I must say, that was impressive." Forrest said, returning Geodude. "Using a spin in the opposite direction to get your Pokemon to stop the initial spin."

"Steelix, let's roll!" Forrest cried, tossing his Pokeball.

"Steelix!" Steelix cried and looked down at the field, waiting to see its opponent.

"Charmander, go!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Char! Char!" Charmander cried happily.

"Charmander, use Flamethrower!" I commanded. The flames his Steelix dead on.

"So, your Charmander knows Flamethrower, too?" Forrest asked.

"Yeah, we trained a lot yesterday to perfect it. Looks like we learned it just in time!" I said happily.

"No matter. Steelix, use Bind!" Forrest yelled.

"Charmander! Smokescreen, quickly!" Smoke now covered the field. "Now use Flamethrower!"

"Sandstorm, Steelix. Blow away the smoke!"

The Sandstorm quickly removed the smoke from the field and cancelled out Charmander's Flamethrower before it could reach Steelix.

I lowered my cap so my eyes were covered better. Charmander wasn't going to be able to last if this kept up.

"Charmander, use Flamethrower while running towards Steelix!"

Charmander was able to hit Steelix with its Flamethrower as it took off running.

"Steelix use Iron Tail!"

Steelix's Iron Tail was just about to hit Charmander when Charmander used Flamethrower again, but it only angered Steelix since the flames hit its face.

"Try Iron Tail again!"

Before I could get the command out to dodge, the Iron Tail hit Charmander.

"Char!" Charmander cried out in pain.

"Hurry before it can recover! Use Rock Throw!" Boulders crushed down on Charmander, crushing him.

Once the dirt cleared I saw Steelix breathing heavy and with a few scratches. I saw Charmander breathing heavy, scratches all over, and supporting itself.

I glanced up and saw Forrest with a shocked expression.

"Char..." Charmander said falling to the ground, fainted.

"Charmander is unable to battle! Steelix wins!" the referee announced.

I couldn't believe it. Even after all our hard work on Flamethrower, Charmander still couldn't win. With a voice full of defeat, I said, "You did good, Charmander. Take a well deserved rest." and returned Charmander and attached the Pokeball back to my belt. It was apparent that Flamethrower alone wasn't going to cut it. We obviously had a lot more work to do.

I glanced down at my feet and Pikachu looked up at me.

"You ready, Pikachu?" I asked him.

"Pi!"

"Alright then! Pikachu let's show them!" I cried.

Pikachu ran onto the field with a look in his eyes, which I haven't seen in a while. The spark that he always got from battling was back once again. This was his first battle since the ambush that wounded him severely and made up Dad's mystery disappearance.

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

"Steelix stop Pikachu in its tracks with Sandstorm!"

The Sandstorm started, but Pikachu wasn't completely stopped in his tracks, he just slowed down.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt and spin!"

Pikachu quickly jumped and used the attack, and once on the ground he spun and cancelled out the Sandstorm.

"Rock Throw, Steelix!"

"Use Quick Attack to dodge!"

The rocks started flying towards Pikachu, who dodged. Once the attack was over, he continued to run towards Steelix.

"Now, use Iron Tail!"

Pikachu jumped up so he was at Steelix's head and slammed his tail onto Steelix's skull.

"Steel!" Steelix cried and fell to the ground.

Pikachu landed on the ground, waiting to see if his opponent could move.

"Steelix is unable to battle! Pikachu wins!" the referee announced.

"Way to go Pikachu!" I cried.

"Pika, Pika!" he cheered.

_One thing bothers me. _I thought to myself._ In the videos I've seen of dad and Pikachu against a Pokemon who knew Sandstorm, Pikachu was always stopped in his tracks. Did dad train him to only be slowed after that battle?_

"Well, you've done well so far, but can you last against my final Pokemon? Let's rock and roll, Rhyperior!" Forrest cried, tossing his last Pokeball.

"Rhyperior!" Rhyperior cried, looking at Pikachu.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried signalling he was ready for the battle. He wasn't afraid of a huge Pokemon like that.

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack."

"Use Rock Blast!"

"Pikachu, continue to use Quick Attack to dodge!" Pikachu zigzagged to avoid, but some of the collateral damage from Rock Blast hit him, and damaged him.

Rhyperior's Rock Blast ended and I had to act quick if I wanted to end this.

"Iron Tail, quick!" I cried.

Pikachu jumped into the air and his tail hit Rhyperior on its head.

"Megahorn!"

Pikachu was still going towards the ground and the Megahorn hit him, sending him flying towards a wall.

Pikachu slammed into the wall. Hard.

"Pikachu!" I cried, running over to the wall.

I knelt down and picked up Pikachu.

"Pika…" he said weakly.

"Pikachu, you did your best. Now rest."

As I looked at Pikachu I saw a look in his eyes. It was like he was remembering something or maybe this is something that happened that day dad disappeared.

"Is Pikachu okay?" Jason asked me.

"Yeah, he's okay." I replied.

I put Pikachu by my feet and removed Bulbasaur's Pokeball.

"You're my last hope for this badge. Bulbasaur, I choose you again!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur cried, looking up at Rhyperior.

"Rhyperior, use Dig!"

_Just what I wanted you to use._

"Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf in the hole!"

"Rhyperior, get out of there, quick!"

Bulbasaur was faster than Rhyperior and the attack went into the hole.

Rhyperior popped up from the ground and I could tell the Razor Leaf had made contact.

"Rhyperior, end this with Rock Blast!" Forrest cried.

"Dodge it!"

Bulbasaur started dodging the attack. I waited for Rock Blast to finish and as I was waiting, I heard Bulbasaur cry out in pain. One of the rocks had hit Bulbasaur.

"Bulbasaur, use Leech Seed!" I cried as soon as the attack ended.

"Bulbasaur!" the Pokemon replied.

The seeds latched onto Rhyperior and started draining its energy, healing Bulbasaur.

"Rhy!" Rhyperior cried.

"Bulbasaur, let's finish this. Use Razor Leaf!" I cried.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur said confidently.

The attack hit Rhyperior whose energy had just finished getting drained.

"Rhy!" Rhyperior cried falling to the ground, struggling to get back up.

"Hurry before it can get back up! Use Solarbeam!" I shouted. Rhyperior tried its best to get back on its feet as Bulbasaur was charging its energy.

Just as Rhyperior was about to completely stand up, Bulbasaur was ready. "Let 'em have it, Bulbasaur!" I yelled.

"Bulb...a...SAUR!" Bulbasaur declared, firing the Solarbeam, knocking out Rhyperior for good.

The referee looked over and raised his flag towards me.

"Rhyperior is unable to battle! Bulbasaur wins! That means the challenger, Adam, is the winner!" he announced.

"We did it, Bulbasaur!" I cried, kneeling down to praise my partner.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur cried happily.

"Take a good rest now." I said, returning my Pokemon friend.

I stood back up and Forrest was walking over.

"Well Adam, you won. Here is the Boulder Badge." Forrest said, presenting the cushion with the badge resting on it.

I picked up the badge and looked at it for a moment.

"I just got the Boulder Badge!" I cried, holding the badge up into the air, doing the same pose that my Dad always did when he won a badge.

I removed my badge case and placed the badge inside of it.

"Adam, Jason, there are many gyms out there. Those gyms are far tougher than this one. I wish you two the best of luck." Forrest said.

"Thanks," we said and walked out of the gym.

"So, we go to Cerulean City now?" Jason asked.

"Actually, we go through Mt. Moon, to get to Cerulean City. Before we leave, I need to heal my Pokemon." I answered.

"Okay,"

We walked to the Pokemon Center so I could get my Pokemon healed.

"Adam, I noticed that Pikachu looked sad when he was defeated. Did you notice that, too?" Jason asked suddenly.

"Yeah. Yeah, I did notice." I replied, looking at Pikachu who was perched on my shoulder. _Maybe he's sad because he's reminded of the time he wasn't strong enough to protect my dad when he lost. Or maybe the person who attacked him had a Rhyperior, too. _I thought.

We walked into the Pokemon Center and I went to the counter.

"Hello again. How may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked kindly.

"I just won a gym battle. I need my Pokemon healed."

"Certainly,"

I placed my Pokeballs into the tray and Pikachu hopped into it. I handed Nurse Joy my Trainer card, too.

I glanced at the television again and saw the same announcement that I had seen last time. It was Lilian announcing about the contests…again.

"Adam, your Pokemon are healed." Nurse Joy said after a while.

"Thanks," I said removing my Pokeballs.

"I'm calling my mom. To let her know of my success." Jason said, and walked off towards the video phones.

I walked over towards the phones to call my mom, too.

**Jason's POV**

I waited for my mom or dad to pick up the phone. After the third ring, my mom answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey, mom!"

"Jason! Hi! How are you?" she asked.

"Hey, Gary! Jason's on the phone!" I heard her calling for my dad to come to the phone.

"I'm doing good, mom. What about you and dad?"

"We're fine, we just miss you a little. So where are you now?"

"Well-"

"Hey, Jason!" my dad greeted.

"Hey, dad! Well, I'm in Pewter City." I answered my mom's question.

"Pewter City?" he asked.

"Yep. Guess what?"

"What?" they asked.

"I got my first gym badge. See?" I said, removing my badge case and opening it.

"Very nice." my dad said.

"Aww, my little boy has his first badge!"

"MOM!" Ugh. Why does she still treat me like a little kid? Adam's mom does it to him, too. But not as much as mine.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly.

"Well, I gotta go. We're about to leave for Mt. Moon."

"Tell Adam we said hey."

"I will. Bye, love you both."

"Love you, too."

**Adam's POV**

I dialed my house and waited for mom to pick up. On the second ring, she answered the phone.

"Adam!" she said, surprised.

"Hey, mom."

"How are you?"

"Good, what about you?"

"Good. Where are you and Jason now?"

"Pewter City,"

"Oh. What happened there?"

"I got my first badge."

"Let me see!" she said in an excited voice. I reminded her so much of dad. She was always excited when he won a battle, and she was just as excited for me.

I removed my badge case and opened it, then held it close to the screen, so she could see. She smiled at me but when I looked at her eyes, I could see a sad look. She wished my dad was there to see it.

"Adam, I'm proud of you and I know your dad is, too."

"I...I know, mom."

"Well sweetie, I have to go. I love you."

"Love you, too."

I walked towards the doors and Jason hurried over.

"To Mt. Moon now?" he asked.

"Yeah, to Mt. Moon." I replied.

I thought to myself,_ Well, we got our first badge. Now we head to Cerulean City to challenge the next gym! _That badge had given me a burst of confidence._ Don't worry, Dad. I WILL find you somehow._

Little did I know that I would get my first clue to his whereabouts _VERY_ soon.

**Author's Note: Adam has taken his first step towards entering the Pokemon League, and now he and Jason are back on the road. What will the boys find in Mt. Moon? What do you think is this "first clue" that Adam is talking about?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	7. Mysteries at Mt Moon

**Author's Note: We would like to wish a Happy Canada Day to all of our Canadian readers! Have fun celebrating today and enjoy the story!**

Jason and I walked along Route 4 and finally we came to the entrance of Mt. Moon.

"Wow. From Pewter City, it seems so different. Up close…" Jason trailed looking up at the mountain.

Yes, Mt. Moon you can see clearly from Pewter City; that's how tall it is. Mt. Moon is named after the Moon Stone since that's where many Moon Stones are, along with a rare kind of Pokemon named Clefairy. Fossils can be dug up there too…or so I've been told. Climbing Mt. Moon doesn't seem possible, so travellers go through the caves to get to the other side.

"Well, I think we've spent enough time looking at Mt. Moon. How about we actually explore it?" I asked, breaking the silence.

"Yeah, I agree." Jason said.

We entered the cave that was at the entrance to the inside of Mt. Moon. Jason let out Charmander to light the way for us. As we walked, I spotted Zubats, Paras, and Geodudes. So far, we hadn't seen a single Clefairy. I knew they were shy and didn't like to be seen by people, but still.

"Where would they be?" Jason asked as we continued.

"I don't know. They just don't want to show themselves to us." I said.

Mt. Moon was so big. All these caves were starting to irk my nerves. I wanted out, but we still had a while to go…plus, Mt. Moon had little light for us to see so that bugged me too. Charmander's flame only illuminated a few feet ahead of us.

Walking in silence, I suddenly saw a flash of pink from the corner of my eye. Stopping and looking where I thought I saw the pink. Standing there was a Clefairy.

"Awesome! The first Clefairy." I exclaimed.

"Clef! Clefairy!"

I took out my Pokedex and aimed it at the Clefairy, recording its data. "The friendly and peaceful Clefairy is admired by many for its magical powers. Its special Metronome technique allows it to attack in many different ways. Some believe the Clefairy have formed their own society in Mt. Moon where they 'pray' to the Moon Stone. According to legends, this stone fell from the moon hundreds of years ago." said the mechanical voice of the Pokedex.

"We should get going." Jason said after looking at the Clefairy for a few more minutes.

"Wait, shouldn't we catch it? It's a rare Pokemon."

"I think just seeing one is enough of a reward for me. Besides it looks too cute to use in a battle."

"Maybe a coordinator could use it in a battle. Anyway, you're right. Let's move on."

Mt. Moon was a lot more complicated to travel through than I thought it would be. I think Jason thought the same thing since he was looking a little annoyed.

"How about we take a break?" I asked, since we had been walking for a while.

Jason just nodded and sat down where he was just standing.

I looked through my backpack for a flashlight, but found none.

"Packed everything but a flashlight." I muttered. "You have a flashlight?"

Jason dug through his bag.

"No, no flashlight. Well Charmander, do you mind walking with us to provide some more light?" he asked.

"Char!"

"I can call-" I started.

"Don't call out your Charmander. Too much light will upset the Zubats."

I nodded and slung my bag over my back.

We continued through the caves, twisting and turning. Sometimes we had to backtrack, since we hit dead ends.

After a while, I heard some voices echoing off the walls of the cave.

"Did you hear that?" I asked, stopping to listen.

Jason was about to answer with "No", but stopped and nodded his head after hearing the voices, too.

"Charmander, return." Jason said, ever-cautiously. He worried that the light would give us away. "Think we should check it out?"

"What do you think?" I asked sarcastically. What can I say? I have my dad's love of adventure and curiosity.

Jason sighed and followed me. We crept along the wall keeping to the shadows so the people wouldn't see us.

"Why are we stuck looking for stupid stones?" one of the voices asked, annoyance clear in his voice.

"Just shut up and keep looking!" another voice snapped irritably. This voice belonged to a girl.

I stopped and Jason bumped into me.

"Dude!" I cried quietly.

"Sorry. It's dark and I can't see that well." Jason muttered.

I just nodded my head.

"Grunt 076 and Grunt 080 have you found any Moon Stones yet?" a voice asked.

The voice that just spoke sounded static like which means it was from a radio device.

"No. No Moon Stones have been found."

"Ugh! You two are useless! Keep looking and if any trouble appears…deal with it."

"Yes, sir!"

I edged closer to the corner and poked my head around to see who was in this cave looking for Moon Stones. Two people were there. One was a guy and the other was a woman and they were holding flashlights looking for Moon Stones, as I had just heard.

"It's Team Rocket." I whispered.

"Team Rocket? It can't be." Jason replied.

"They have white uniforms which means they're low-ranking grunts with a red R on their shirts."

"Two low-ranking grunts? We can take them."

"Yeah, I know we can. I just don't get something."

"Get what?"

"Team Rocket disbanded ten years ago. I don't get how they can be a group again. It doesn't make sense." My dad had just become a Pokemon Master back then and he rallied the Elite Four from each region, along with their regional champions, and they defeated Team Rocket once and for all, and destroyed their headquarters. I didn't understand how they were back again.

Jason was quiet for a good while and that worried me. Jason was never quiet unless he was asleep or upset.

"Do..." he trailed, seeming to be unsure of what he was about to say.

"Do what?" I asked.

"Do you think Team Rocket has anything to do with...with what happened to your dad?"

I looked at Pikachu and it seemed like the sadness lingered in his eyes.

"I don't know. How about we get these grunts out of the way? Maybe they'll spill everything they know if we beat them." I asked. Whenever something bad happened in the past in Kanto, Team Rocket were usually always the culprits, so it made sense to me that they were probably the ones responsible for dad's disappearance.

"Let's do it." Jason said confidently.

We walked around the corner quietly and the two grunts still hadn't noticed us.

"This is so lame. We're here looking for Moon Stones while the others are at base." The man whined.

"Will you just shut up? Arceus, you are annoying!" the woman cried and turned around. As she turned around, her flashlight caught us.

"Stop looking around! We got some punks to take care of." she said to her partner in crime.

The man turned around and looked at us.

The grunts seemed similar to each other; must be brother and sister. They both had blonde hair, brown eyes, and they were slightly tan.

"Let's take care of these little punks." The woman said, lowering her hand to her waist.

The man whispered something into her ear and she nodded.

"Hate to cut the meeting short, but we gotta run!" she cried as the two ran off.

Jason and I ran after the duo.

"Great…just great." Jason said sarcastically. "They're leading us right to the top grunts."

Standing in front of the lower ranks were two guys who looked like they could easily break us in half if they wanted. They were wearing black uniforms.

"You two ruined the search and discovered what we were doing here." the shorter one said.

"Now you pay for it." said the taller one, enlarging a Pokeball.

"Arbok, go!" the shorted one cried, tossing a Pokeball.

"Arbok!" Arbok cried.

"Go, Wartortle!" the taller one cried as he tossed the Pokeball.

"War! Wartortle!" Wartortle cried.

Jason enlarged a Pokeball.

"Charmander, go!" Jason cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Char! Charmander!" Charmander cried.

I didn't know what else these Grunts could do, so I needed to use Pikachu. He was familiar with Team Rocket's ways.

"Pikachu, let's show 'em." I said.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried leaping off my shoulder. He seemed extra angry at Team Rocket, since he had so many run-ins with them in the past.

"Arbok, Poison Sting!"

"Wartortle, Water Gun on Charmander!"

"Pikachu, cancel that Water Gun out! Use Thunderbolt on it!" I cried.

"Charmander, Flamethrower!" Jason cried seeing the technique I had used.

The Thunderbolt wrapped around the Water Gun and shocked Wartortle. The Flamethrower burned through the Poison Sting.

The grunts were getting frustrated at us; I could tell by the looks on their faces.

The battle continued on and after some minutes had passed, Arbok and Wartortle had landed one, maybe two moves while Pikachu and Charmander landed most if not all their moves. I couldn't believe how well we were doing in our first battle against Team Rocket!

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail!"

"Charmander, Metal Claw!"

"Dodge!" the two grunts cried.

Arbok and Wartortle dodged successfully, jumping right over our Pokemon and facing Jason and I directly.

"Were getting beaten down. We'll have to go to our last resort! Arbok, Poison Sting right at those kids!"

"Wartortle, Hydro Pump on them, too!"

The attacks were going to hit us head on since Pikachu and Charmander were behind Arbok and Wartortle. We had no way to defend ourselves from the oncoming attacks. Was our first battle with Team Rocket also going to be our last?

**Mysterious Person's POV**

I followed the two boys into Mt. Moon, listening to their conversations. I made sure to keep my distant or else I would be noticed.

After following them for a while, I heard the voices from deeper into the cave. Sneaking off into another tunnel, I headed towards the voices.

"Team Rocket grunts? Here?" I asked myself.

I stayed in the shadows and waited; knowing that the two kids would be here soon. I heard footsteps running towards where I was and I stepped farther back so that the shadows were covering me more.

"Great… just great. They lead us right to the top grunts." the brown-haired boy said sarcastically.

Standing in front of the lower-ranks were two higher-ranked grunts.

"You two ruined the search." The shorter one said.

"Now you pay for it." The taller one said, enlarging a Pokeball.

A battle began as the kids and the grunts released their Pokemon. The kids were beating these grunts without any effort. I had to admit, I was surprised. They seemed like they could handle themselves. Perhaps I could make this work to my advantage.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail!"

"Charmander, Metal Claw!"

"Dodge!" the two grunts cried.

Arbok and Wartortle dodged successfully.

"Were getting beaten down. We'll have to go to our last resort! Arbok, Poison Sting right at those kids!"

"Wartortle, Hydro Pump on them, too!"

The attacks were going to hit the kids head on since Pikachu and Charmander were behind Arbok and Wartortle.

"Flamethrower." I ordered my Pokemon, standing beside me.

The Flamethrower shot out from the shadows and blocked the attack from hitting the kids. They glanced my way and looked at me; but I knew that they only saw the faint features of me from the glow of the Flamethrower. I ran off right as the Flamethrower ended. I couldn't let anyone know about me just yet.

**Adam's POV**

Jason and I had closed our eyes, but the attack never came. Instead, I felt a heat wave. I opened my eyes and saw a Flamethrower coming from another route. I nudged Jason and he opened his eyes and saw the Flamethrower.

"Look over there." I said pointing to the Flamethrower.

I saw a figure, but couldn't even make out one feature since the darkness of where they were hid the person and their Pokemon.

"How did that happen?" the girl cried.

"This isn't right!" the guy cried to the higher grunts.

"Shut up!" the three yelled to the whining grunt.

"You two win this time." The four grunts said, and then ran off. Rats, I wanted to get them to talk.

"Let's see if we can find anything about what they were doing." Jason said as he approached the area where the grunts had been searching.

I just nodded and looked along the walls where the wall had been disturbed. I saw only dirt clumps.

"Did you find anything over there?" I asked, standing back up.

"No, only two papers. One paper has a drawing of a stone on it. The other has numbers and letters on it. The stone is a Moon Stone if I'm not mistaken." Jason answered.

I walked over to where he was searching and looked at the papers.

"Those are Moon Stones. What would Team Rocket want with that? I have no idea what that other paper could be." I said, glancing at the papers again.

Jason folded the papers up and put them in an inside pocket in his jacket.

"Well, how about we get out of Mt. Moon now?" I asked. I was a little anxious to get out of these caves.

"Yeah, maybe along the way, we'll find some more dropped information from the grunts." Jason replied.

"Yeah, maybe. I can't believe we almost got hit by those attacks."

"I know, I can't either. That was kind of scary."

"Kind of? We could've died! I wonder who stopped the attack and saved us?"

"Maybe it was just a traveler and saw we were in trouble."

"Maybe…"

We walked along through the cave. It was getting brighter and brighter as we walked.

"There's the exit!" I cried happily and took off running.

"Yes!" Jason cried.

I waited on the path for Jason. He ran up beside me, catching his breath.

"Well, the next stop is Cerulean City now, right?" he asked.

"Yep. Time to challenge the gym leader and get our second badge!" I cried enthused. As a full-time gym leader, Misty didn't have very much free time to come and visit us in Pallet Town.

We started walking down the path and I spotted a sign. Sure, the sign was like any other, but what caught my attention was what was written on it. I walked over to the sign and looked at it.

"Jason come look at this!" I cried.

Jason walked over to where I was and looked at the sign. It was a simple sign that pointed out the path to Cerulean City, but someone had scribbled a note on the bottom corner.

"I can't believe that's still here." Jason said, shocked.

"My dad told me about this." I said.

"Mine, too. It was years ago."

Written in red, but faded over the years was, 'GARY WAS HERE! ASH IS A LOSER!'

Jason and I busted out laughing at the sign. Laughing at how immature our dads were when they were our age and how they've changed into what they are today.

I then took a marker from my bag and wrote in the opposite corner, 'ADAM AND JASON WERE HERE! BEST BROS. FOREVER!' Now THAT's a much better note.

**Author's Note: Not sure if anybody noticed the reference with that sign, so let us know if you recognize it.**

**So it appears that Team Rocket has resurfaced again after all these years. What are they up to and what are they after? Are they linked to Ash's disappearance or not? Who is the mysterious person that saved Adam and Jason? And what awaits the boys in Cerulean City?**

**The intensity level of this journey just got a whole lot higher! Find out what new surprises and mysteries await the boys in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	8. A Match With Misty

Jason and I had stopped for rest along the path that lead to Cerulean City. Since we had stopped, I figured that this was a good time to get some practice in.

"How about we have a battle?" I asked.

"Sure, you're on." Jason said, never one to back down.

We walked over to a grassy area.

"Spearow, go!" Jason cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Spear. Spearow!" Spearow cried and looked at Jason.

"Pidgey, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Pid! Pidgey!" Pidgey cried, flying happily in the air.

"Jason, you attack first." I said.

"Spearow, use Peck!" commanded Jason. Spearow's beak glowed white and zoomed towards Pidgey.

"Wait and use Guest when Spearow is close!" I said to Pidgey. Spearow drew closer and closer and then Pidgey launched its attack.

Spearow was blown back and was damaged but Jason kept his Pokemon in control. "Pull up!" he cried. Spearow did so. "Now Spearow, use Fury Attack!"

I was shocked. Since when did Spearow know Fury Attack? Pidgey was hit by a flurry of pecks and claws.

"Pidgey!" Pidgey cried, getting hit by the Fury Attack. That one attack had done a good amount of damage to Pidgey.

"Pidgey, use Sand Attack!"

"Flap your wings and clear the sand away!"

The sand was cleared quickly and Spearow emerged and landed Peck on Pidgey. Pidgey fell towards the ground defeated and I returned Pidgey before it hit the ground.

"You did your best." I said as I placed the Pokeball back to my belt.

"Dude, what was up with that? You weren't focused." Jason said, walking over.

"I don't know." I said, lying.

The truth was, I had a lot on my mind. Ever since yesterday, seeing Team Rocket it just made something inside of me…break, I guess. Last night, I dreamed that I saw the scene of where my dad last was, except he was lying on the ground dead and Team Rocket was there laughing. I was so freaked out by the dream, that I didn't sleep after that. I knew I needed to sleep since we were going to be in Cerulean City soon.

Anyway, we walked for a few more hours and saw the city in view.

"I think we should tell Officer Jenny that Team Rocket is back." I said as I stopped at the entrance of the city. Maybe telling Officer Jenny would clear my mind.

"Yeah, I think that's a good idea." Jason said, stopping at the entrance.

We then entered Cerulean City and headed towards the Pokemon Center to ask where Officer Jenny was.

"Hello. How may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Yes, can you tell us where Officer Jenny is?" I asked.

"She happens to be here right now. She's giving a speech to some trainers. You two should go and hear some of it."

"Where is the speech being held?"

"Down that hall, last door on the right."

"Thank you, Nurse Joy."

Nurse Joy just nodded her head and we walked down the hall.

"When did Officer Jenny start giving speeches?" Jason asked.

"No clue. Guess it's new." I said, opening the door slowly.

We stood against the wall and listened to the rest of the speech.

"Remember, if trouble happens, come to the Pokemon Center and tell Nurse Joy you wish to talk to me, Officer Jenny. She'll contact me immediately and help will be on the way." Officer Jenny said, ending her speech.

"If you need to talk to me, I'll be here for a few minutes. Thank you for taking the time to come and hear this speech." Officer Jenny said.

Many people left the room and Jason and I quickly headed to Officer Jenny.

"Officer Jenny!" Jason cried, grabbing her attention. She looked at us and waited.

"Team Rocket is back. We encountered them yesterday in Mt. Moon. They were searching for Moon Stones." I explained.

"Team Rocket? Don't be ridiculous, they disbanded a long time ago. They couldn't be back together." She said.

"It's true, though!"

"I'm sorry, but I have to go."

She walked off and Jason muttered something explicit under his breath.

"How could she not believe us?" he cried.

"Don't know. Then again, they haven't been seen in years, so it's understandable that nobody would believe us. Anyway, I'm going to challenge Misty tomorrow. I can't battle today, I need to rest." I said, walking towards the door.

Jason followed me as I walked back towards the counter to get a room.

"Hello again. How may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked.

"One room, please." I said as I handed her my trainer card. Jason handed his trainer card, too.

"Alright, you two have Room Three. Enjoy your stay." Nurse Joy said as she handed us our trainer cards back and a key.

"Thanks, Nurse Joy." I said as I walked towards the rooms.

I unlocked the door and walked over to a bed and threw my bag onto it.

"Dude, you okay?" Jason asked, and closed the door.

"Yeah. I'm fine." I replied.

"No, no you're not."

I sat down on the bed and looked at Jason.

"What do you think is wrong with me?" I asked.

"Well, for one, you're tired. Two, I know what happened last night."

"How?"

"I heard you muttering in your sleep. I woke up, and when I glanced over, I saw the tear stains on your face. Adam, your dad is out there; don't let this nightmare mess with you. He's alive and you know it."

"I know. I know he is." But I was saying that to try to convince myself of it, too.

Jason just nodded his head.

"Let's go get some lunch." He said suddenly.

I got off of the bed and followed him out of the room and towards the cafeteria.

* * *

><p>I woke up the next morning, ready for the gym battle. I had my team picked out and I was ready. I felt much better since I had slept better and the nightmare didn't bug me…this time.<p>

"Ready?" Jason asked suddenly.

I was so deep in thought, I didn't know that he had gotten up.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm ready." I replied as I pulled my bag onto my back.

We left the room and headed towards the gym. I stopped and released Bulbasaur and Pidgey, while Pikachu hopped down onto the ground.

"Alright, it's time for another gym battle. We can do it." I said, giving them another pep talk.

I returned Bulbasaur and Pidgey and attached the Pokeballs back to my belt as Pikachu went to his perch on my shoulder.

We entered the gym and the gym was just as my dad had told me. The pool was right in the middle with the platforms where the trainer, leader, and referee stood floated in place. The platforms that decorated the field moved slightly. The bleachers were still there along with the office. I saw something from the corner of the gym, but decided it was Misty's Psyduck, since it always escaped the Pokeball; according to the stories my dad told me.

"I'm here to challenge the gym leader." I said into the empty gym.

"Well, would you look here." A voice said.

Jason and I looked up to see Misty. Misty was the same age as my dad and Jason's dad. Her orange hair was to her shoulders, so it wasn't up in her usual ponytail. She wore jean shorts, a red tank top, and sneakers.

"So, who's challenging me?" she asked.

"I am, today." I answered. Jason and I had decided that I go first this time, since he went first against Brock.

"Okay, let's battle then, Adam. Hope you're ready for an all-out offense against my Water Pokemon!"

Misty walked over to her side of the field and stepped onto her platform. I walked over to my side and stepped onto the platform. When I looked back at Misty she had her hair up in her trademark side ponytail. Jason sat in the bleachers, watching me.

A girl ran over with two flags and stepped onto the referee platform. "The battle between the Gym Leader, Misty; and the challenger, Adam; will now begin!" she cried.

"Staryu, go!" Misty cried, tossing a Pokeball.

"Hya!" Staryu cried, landing on the platform in front of Misty.

"Pidgey, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing Pidgey's Pokeball.

"Pidgey!" Pidgey cried flying in the sky.

I decided to make the first move. "Pidgey, use Gust!"

"Use Swift, Staryu!" said Misty.

Pidgey's Gust trapped the Swift into the wind and the Gust and Swift combined together to form something like a contest move, and hit Staryu.

"Use Tackle, Pidgey!"

"Jump into the water!" Staryu jumped in right before Pidgey could hit it. Hidden underwater, I had no idea where the next attack would come from.

"Water Gun!" shouted Misty. The blast of water shot up from out of the pool.

"Dodge it!" I cried, hoping Pidgey could move away in time. Luckily, Pidgey barely dodged the attack. Staryu hopped out of the water and back onto the platform after using Water Gun. "Now Quick Attack, Pidgey!"

"Staryu, dodge!" Staryu didn't dodge fast enough and got hit by Pidgey's Quick Attack.

"Now, Pidgey! Let's finish this. Use Gust!"

Pidgey launched the Gust and Staryu was lifted into the air. When the Gust vanished, Staryu had fainted, its red core was blinking.

"Staryu is unable to battle! Pidgey wins!" the girl cried, raising a flag to my side.

"You did a good job, Staryu. Now rest." Misty said as she removed another Pokeball. "I must say Adam, that first match was well played. Let's see how you do against my next Pokemon. Starmie, go!"

"Huh!" Starmie grunted, landing on the platform.

"Pidgey, use Quick Attack!"

"Starmie, Ice Beam when Pidgey gets close!"

I was in trouble. Ice attacks are super-effective on Flying Pokemon! "Pidgey, stop!" It was too late. Pidgey was going too fast and Starmie's Ice Beam hit Pidgey's left wing.

"Pid! Pidgey!" Pidgey cried, trying to stay in the air.

"Pidgey, return!" I cried before Pidgey took an unwanted swim in the pool.

"Due to a status effect, Pidgey is unable to battle. Starmie wins!" declared the girl.

"It's alright, Pidgey. You did a great job for your first gym battle." I said as I attached the Pokeball and removed another Pokeball.

"Bulbasaur, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball. I had to be careful of Ice Beam, though. Ice attacks are powerful against Grass Pokemon.

"Bulba! Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur cried, nearly taking a tumble into the pool.

"Starmie, Ice Beam!" Misty cried.

"Jump to the next platform!" I cried quickly. Bulbasaur jumped to another platform and avoided the Ice Beam.

If only there was a way to freeze the pool. Then Bulbasaur could easily skate around and attack close up.

"Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf!" I cried.

"Starmie, dodge, quick!" Starmie jumped into the water and successfully dodged the Razor Leaf. "Now use Surf!"

Great. Just great. Can Razor Leaf break through the Surf to make a hole and jump through? "Only one way to find out." I muttered. "Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf to make a hole through the wave and jump through to avoid!" Bulbasaur used Razor Leaf at the wave and the Razor Leaf cut through the wave.

"Bulbasaur, forget about jumping! Keep up the Razor Leaf! Split it up in the middle!" Bulbasaur continued to use Razor Leaf and the wave was suddenly split in two and water cascaded down and Starmie plopped into the pool. We did it! We stopped the Surf!

"Rapid Spin!" commanded Misty.

"Jump to the platforms to dodge!" I said.

Starmie came out of the water spinning very fast, and started chasing after Bulbasaur, who continued jumping from platform to platform.

"Leech Seed!" I said, hoping that would stop Starmie in its tracks, or at least slow it down. Bulbasaur quickly used Leech Seed and Starmie was slowed as vines entangled its body, but it still managed to slam into Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur landed on a platform instead of the water, thankfully. Starmie fell into the water and you could see the Leech Seed draining its energy.

Now that Starmie was losing health, now seemed like my best chance to end this battle! "Bulbasaur, let's finish this with one last Razor Leaf!"

"Starmie, Swift!"

The two attacks met in mid-air and exploded, causing smoke to appear. Both Pokemon were damaged from the blast.

"Bulbasaur, use Solarbeam!" Bulbasaur started to charge the Solarbeam by gathering energy.

"Ice Beam, quick!" shouted Misty. The Ice Beam hit Bulbasaur and he struggled to stay on his feet.

"Bulbasaur, stay strong! Keep charging!" I cried. Little by little, Bulbasaur's body became covered with ice. By the time his body was completely engulfed, the Solarbeam was done charging.

"FIRE!" I screamed boldly.

"Bulb...a…SAUR!" Bulbasaur fired that Solarbeam so hard, that it shattered the ice that was surrounding him. The Solarbeam hit Starmie and it fell into the water with its red core blinking.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur cried happily. But then, Bulbasaur collapsed. That Ice Beam attack was just too much for him to handle.

"Both Pokemon are unable to battle! It's a tie!" said the girl.

"Good job, Bulbasaur. Take a rest." I said, returning Bulbasaur.

"Good job, Starmie." Misty said, returning Starmie.

"Well Adam, I must say you've done well so far. You certainly have your father's battling talent, but I'm afraid it won't end well for you. Time for my most powerful Pokemon! Gyarados, go!" Misty cried.

Gyarados roared in rage, standing its full height in the pool.

Seeing a Gyarados this close was just...wow. I couldn't even describe it! I looked down at Pikachu who had a look of determination in his eyes. I was surprised, since Pikachu had refused to battle Misty back when my dad had battled for his badge.

"Pikachu, let's show 'em!" I cried.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried, jumping onto the platform.

I saw Misty smile at seeing Pikachu, since it had been a long time since she last saw Pikachu battle, but her smile quickly vanished.

"Pikachu, use Volt Tackle!"

"Gyarados, Protect!" Pikachu's attack was useless against a shield like that.

"Gyarados, Hydro Pump!"

"Thunderbolt!" Pikachu's Thunderbolt wrapped around the Hydro Pump and zapped Gyarados, causing him to cry out in pain. Being both a Flying and Water Pokemon, electricity was extra super-effective.

"Whirlpool!"

"Thunderbolt again!" The Thunderbolt mixed in with the Whirlpool, but it still came towards Pikachu.

"Pikachu, dodge!" Pikachu managed to leap out of the way to another platform and the Whirlpool crashed into the water, sending a few shocks to Gyarados.

"Gyarados, use Flamethrower!" Misty shouted. The sea serpent Pokemon breathed a beam of flames from its mouth towards Pikachu.

"Pikachu, dodge!" Pikachu dodged just in time. "Now, Iron Tail!" Pikachu flipped back over and slammed his tail onto Gyarados's head.

Gyarados roared in pain again.

"Gyarados, use Flamethrower again!"

"Pikachu, look out!" Pikachu wasn't able to dodge it and took the hit full power. When the attack stopped, Pikachu now matched Gyarados. Both were breathing heavy and had scratches.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried as a flame covered his body.

"Pikachu's burned...no..." I said with shock. Pikachu couldn't last long with a status ailment. I had to act fast!

"Volt Tackle!" Pikachu ran at Gyarados with the Volt Tackle building up. Pikachu jumped off of the platform and into Gyarados. Pikachu flipped and landed back on the platform. Gyarados was still standing, but looked worse than before.

"Flamethrower!"

"Spin and use Thunderbolt to counter!" Pikachu began to spin while using Thunderbolt and the Flamethrower didn't touch him. The electricity destroyed the flames and also spread out and damaged Gyarados a bit more.

"Wow! I've never seen a Thunderbolt used like that!" Misty exclaimed. "What kind of a move was that?"

"That," I said proudly, "Is what my dad would call a Counter-Shield! Now Pikachu, let's end this! Use Iron Tail one more time!"

Pikachu quickly stopped spinning and ran at Gyarados. "PIKA!" Pikachu said as he jumped and slammed his tail into Gyarados.

Gyarados fell towards the ground and I knew that he had fainted. Pikachu landed back on the platform and the burn hurt him once more.

"Gyarados is unable to battle! Pikachu wins! Which means the challenger, Adam wins!"

"Alright! We did it, Pikachu!" I cried. Pikachu just looked at me happily.

Misty returned Gyarados and was walking over towards me. "Well Adam, you won. Here is the Cascade Badge." Misty said, extending the cushion with the badge towards me.

I picked up the badge that looked like a water drop and looked at it for a second.

"Alright! I just won the Cascade Badge!" I cried, holding it up.

"Pi! Pikachu!" Pikachu cried happily.

I removed my badge case and placed the badge into its place. Jason walked down from the bleachers and over towards me.

"Way to go, Adam." He said.

"I must say Adam, you sure do have your dad's battling style. How have you been Adam, Jason?" Misty asked.

"Holding up. You almost had me." I said.

"I'm doing pretty good." Jason replied.

"Well, I guess I'll be battling you tomorrow?" Misty asked Jason.

"Yeah."

"Well Adam, you pulled off some pretty impressive moves."

"Thanks, Misty."

A silence came up and it looked like Misty wanted to ask something, but seemed scared to ask.

"You okay, Misty?" I asked.

"Yes, I'm just wondering…has there been any news of Ash?" she asked.

I knew she was concerned, she was one of dad's oldest and closest friends. But I also knew that she had feelings for my dad long ago. Feelings that he didn't return because he had fallen in love with mom. Thankfully, they didn't let it come between their friendship. I could see in Misty's eyes that those feelings had never really gone away. Some part of her still loved him.

"No, no news. Just the same news everyone else knows." I answered, shaking my head sadly. But then something came to my mind. It was a long shot that she'd believe me, but I had to try.

"Actually, Jason and I saw something in Mt. Moon." I told her. "It was Team Rocket and they were searching for the Moon Stone. We think that they may have had something to do with what happened to dad. I know it's hard to believe, since they disbanded many years ago, but we saw them and we wouldn't lie about something like this. But nobody believes us."

Misty nodded her head and said, "Well, I believe you. I've had many run-ins with Team Rocket in the past, and I know that they never give up! And whenever they're around, something bad always happens. Ash's disappearance and their reappearance at around the same time can't be a coincidence."

I felt relieved and happy that at least one person believed me.

A beeping was heard and Misty looked at her watch.

"Oh, I have a scheduled battle. I hate to cut this short." She said.

"It's fine. We'll be back tomorrow." Jason said.

I nodded my head. Misty stepped forward and hugged us both.

"Good seeing you two again."

She petted Pikachu before she let us go. We headed towards the door and left the gym.

"That was a good gym battle." Jason said.

"Yeah, it was. Badge number two for me!"

We then headed back towards the Pokemon Center so we could eat some lunch.

**Author's Note: Adam's won his second badge, but the police don't believe him when he says that Team Rocket is back again. How will this affect him and Jason on their journey?**

**Find out how Jason performs in his battle next time on Pokemon NG!**


	9. A New Friend

**Author's Note: This chapter begins on the same day as the previous one, right after Adam and Jason eat lunch after Adam's battle with Misty.**

**Jason's POV  
><strong>  
>After I finished my lunch, I grabbed my bag.<p>

"I'm going to do some training. Later!" I said to Adam as I left the cafeteria.

If I wanted to come anywhere close to winning, I needed to catch another type of Pokemon. I mean...I had three, but Charmander would be useless against Misty's Water Pokemon. If I knew some of Adam's dad's tricks, I could have an advantage, but I didn't know how he trained his Pokemon. Dad said that Ash took a lot of risks when battling. I would need to catch a Grass or Electric Pokemon to have any chance of winning.

I walked out of Cerulean City, down the path that lead to Mt. Moon, and started backtracking. Dad had told me that Oddish, Tangela, and Bellsprout lived around here. As luck would have it, I spotted a Tangela, and I removed Charmander's Pokeball.

"Charmander, go!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Char! Charmander!" Charmander cried.

The Tangela spun around and looked at me. It glanced around and I knew it was going to try to escape.

"Charmander, don't let it escape! Use Flamethrower!" I cried quickly. The Tangela started to run, but Charmander's Flamethrower stopped it, while damaging Tangela severely.

"Tang!" Tangela cried, and shot vines out. I could tell that this was either Vine Whip or Constrict.

"Dodge it and use Metal Claw!" Charmander successfully dodged and ran at Tangela while his claw started to glow.

"Char!" Charmander cried, using Metal Claw on Tangela.

"Tangela!" Tangela cried out, struggling to get up.

This was my chance! I tossed a Pokeball and the Tangela was engulfed by the red beam. I waited as the Pokeball wiggled and then stopped.

"Alright! I just caught a Tangela!" I cried, picking up the Pokeball.

"Thanks, Charmander. Take a rest." I said, returning Charmander.

I then let Tangela back out and pointed my Pokedex at it.

"Tangela, a Vine Pokémon. Its body is wrapped in vines which shake when it walks. The rest of its form is hidden beneath these vines. The vines snap off easily if they are grabbed. This happens painlessly, allowing it to make a quick getaway if it's in danger. The lost vines are replaced by newly grown vines the very next day." The mechanical voice said.

I returned Tangela again and I attached the two Pokeballs back to my belt and went back to the Pokemon Center and stopped at the desk.

"Hello, how may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked.

"I need my Pokemon healed." I said, handing her my Pokeballs. Tangela had taken a lot of damage from the battle, and Charmander needed a break, too.

She placed the tray onto the counter and I put my Pokeballs into the tray. I walked over and sat on a chair and waited.

The television was once again showing the announcement of contests. I personally was getting sick and tired of seeing that announcement, it seemed like every time we entered a Pokemon Center it showed this.

"Jason, your Pokemon are healed." Nurse Joy said after a while. I got up and went to the counter.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." I said as I attached my Pokeballs back to my belt.

I walked out of the Pokemon Center and towards the open fields beside the building so I could train for my battle the next day. I had to make sure Tangela would listen to me and figure out the moves Tangela knew.

"Butterfree, Spearow, and Tangela, go!" I cried, tossing the Pokeballs.

"Free!" Butterfree cried, fluttering in the sky happily.

"Spear. Spearow." Spearow said flying to the ground and waiting.

"Tang! Tangela!" Tangela cried happily.

"Alright, guys. Tomorrow we take on the Gym Leader; Misty. She uses only Water Pokemon; Staryu, Starmie, and Gyarados." I said.

My team listened and after a moment they all said their names happily.

"Alright, then. Time to practice." I practiced with my team for a while. They were doing well and Tangela was looking pretty powerful, too. Soon, the sun was setting.

"Good job, guys. Take a rest, for tomorrow is a big day." I said, returning them. I attached the Pokeballs back to my belt and walked into the Pokemon Center. I walked into the room and found Adam not in the room, but Pikachu was drinking ketchup from a bottle.

"Where's Adam, Pikachu?" I asked as I tossed my bag on my bed and walked over to the electric mouse.

"Pikachu. Pika…chu." Pikachu said.

I looked at Adam's bed and didn't see a note. "Guess he went to get some food or he went to shower." I muttered.

I walked out of the room so I could get a bite to eat. I entered the cafeteria and glanced around for Adam, and I saw him eating nearby. I grabbed my dinner and joined him. I talked about my day, the training I did, and my new Pokemon.

* * *

><p>When I woke up the next morning, I saw that Adam was still in his bed. I got off my bed and pulled my jacket on. But then I heard movement from Adam and saw that he was awake and was pulling on his sneakers.<p>

"By the way, I forgot to ask, where were you yesterday?" I asked him. Adam looked up and yawned before he answered.

"I saw that you were practicing. I went to look at what wild Pokemon lived around here. I also walked around the city for a while last night." He replied and resumed tying his sneakers. "Ready for your gym battle?" he asked, standing up while pulling his jacket on.

"Yeah, as I'll ever be." I said, attaching my Pokeball belt.

Pikachu hopped onto Adam's shoulder and we left the room. We returned our keys to Nurse Joy before heading to the gym.

"I'm here to challenge the gym leader." I said.

"Well Jason, I look forward to the battle." Misty's voice said.

I looked over and saw her walking towards her side of the field while pulling her hair into her trademark ponytail. Adam was already sitting on the bleachers.

"I accept the challenge, Jason." Misty said, stepping onto the platform.

I nodded and stepped onto my platform. The referee came running over with her flags.

"The battle between the Gym Leader, Misty; and the challenger, Jason; will now begin!" she cried.

"Starmie, go!" Misty cried, tossing her Pokeball.

"Huh!" Starmie grunted as it landed on the platform.

She had changed up her line-up after battling Adam, but I figured Gyarados was still the last one.

"Butterfree, go!" I cried tossing my Pokeball.

"Butterfree! Free!" Butterfree cried, fluttering in the sky.

"Butterfree, use Confusion!" I cried.

"Starmie, into the water!" Misty quickly said

Butterfree's Confusion missed Starmie, since it was underwater.

"Ice Beam!" said Misty, as Starmie hopped onto a platform and shot a blast of ice at Butterfree.

"Fly around to dodge!" I said, hoping that Butterfree could get out of the way.

Butterfree was able to fly to a different spot just in time since the Ice Beam shot right where Butterfree was less than a second ago. Starmie jumped onto another platform and waited.

"Use Gust!" I cried.

"Starmie dodge quick!" Misty cried. Misty didn't give the command quick enough, though and Gust hit Starmie. Starmie was still strong enough to battle.

Straightforward attacks weren't going to work. I had to try something different. "Butterfree, use Supersonic!" I cried. Butterfree started emitting an ear-piercing noise; everyone in the gym wore the looks of pain and annoyance. The Supersonic successfully hit Starmie and it became confused.

"Starmie, snap out of it!" Misty cried. But Starmie showed no signs of snapping out of it any time soon.

Now that it was confused, this was my chance to attack! "Butterfree, use Gust once more!"

"Starmie, try to use Swift before the Gust!"

Butterfree launched the attack, but Starmie didn't use Swift quick enough. The Swift went into the Gust, and just like it had done when Adam had done it, it combined together like a contest move, and the combined attacks slammed into Starmie.

"Starmie!" Misty cried when Starmie fell into the pool.

Butterfree fluttered in the sky, waiting. Misty glanced into the pool and waited.

"Huh!" Starmie cried, emerging from the water. It was no longer confused.

"Alright, Starmie! Use Ice Beam!" Misty cried. I knew Starmie wasn't going to be able to fight for very much longer, but Butterfree was in trouble with Ice Beam.

"Butterfree, use Psybeam!" I said, trying out the new move Butterfree had learned while training yesterday.

The two moves fought for dominance. After a few minutes, Butterfree moved slightly and was able to get the Psybeam to stop the battle for dominance and hit Starmie, but the price of doing that was getting hit by Ice Beam, too.

Butterfree landed on a platform, struggling to get up. Thankfully, the Ice Beam hadn't frozen Butterfree, but the attack had done its damage. Starmie landed in the water and hadn't popped back up and Misty stepped off her platform and laid down on the edge and looked into the water.

"Starmie!" she cried.

A fainted Starmie floated back up to the surface, with its red core blinking. Misty removed a Pokeball and returned it.

"Starmie is unable to battle! B-" the referee started. But she stopped when she saw Butterfree had fainted on the platform.

"Butterfree!" I cried, quickly returning my exhausted Pokemon.

"Both Pokemon are unable to battle! It's a tie!" she announced, holding both flags straight in the air.

"You did great, Butterfree." I muttered, attaching the Pokeball back to my belt.

"Staryu, go!" Misty cried, tossing the Pokeball.

Yep, I was right. Gyarados would be last. I had my strategy planned out, hopefully this would work. "Spearow let's go!" I cried, and tossed my Pokeball.

"Spearow!" Spearow cried.

"Spearow, use Fury Attack!" I cried, and Spearow flew in close for an attack.

"Staryu, dodge! Then use Water Gun!" Misty shouted. Staryu dodged and was about to use Water Gun, but I wouldn't let up the attacks!

"Spearow, use Peck after dodging the attack!" I cried. Spearow's beak glowed and she successfully dodged the Water Gun and flew towards Staryu. Spearow landed the attack right on the red gem core on Staryu.

"Hya!" Staryu cried out in pain. If I wasn't mistaken, attacking Staryu or Starmie directly in the gem was super effective. I had found a weak point to focus my attacks on!

"Alright Spearow, Fury Attack once more!" I commanded. Spearow flew towards Staryu and Misty called out, "Dodge!", but it was too late. Fury Attack landed on the gem again and Staryu staggered backwards.

"Into the pool!" Misty cried. Staryu went into the protection of the water. "Now use Swift, Staryu!" Misty cried.

"Peck your way through the attack!" I cried. I had seen this used by Adam's mom when she used her Piplup when I had watched old battle videos with Adam. Hopefully, it would work. Spearow started to peck the stars that came towards her, but a few did hit her.

"Spearow, use Fury Attack!"

"Staryu, dodge it!" Misty cried.

Staryu jumped into the pool and avoided the attack. I had to end this soon before Spearow got hurt any more. Spearow was fast, but Staryu was faster.

"Staryu, use Swift once more!" Staryu shot up out of the water, launching its attack.

"Spearow, dodge!" Spearow dodged most Swift and waited.

"Pursuit!" I cried. Spearow landed the attack right on Staryu's gem. Staryu staggered and fell to the ground, fainted.

"Staryu is unable to battle! Spearow wins!" the referee cried, holding a flag towards me as Misty returned Staryu.

"Well Jason, so far, you've done well. Time for my strongest Pokemon. Gyarados, go!" Misty cried, tossing her final Pokeball.

Gyarados landed in the pool and roared.

"Spearow, use Pursuit!" I cried, as Spearow zoomed towards Gyarados.

"Gyarados, Whirlpool!" Misty cried. I had to get Spearow to stop the attack, but it was too late. The Whirlpool sucked Spearow into it. After a few moments the Whirlpool vanished and Spearow was struggling to keep flying.

Spearow hadn't fainted, but she was close to it. She was determined to show Gyarados who the boss was or at least put up a worthy fight.

"I'm shocked. Your Spearow is tough. Gyarados, Flamethrower!" Misty cried.

"Spearow fly low to dodge!" I ordered.

Spearow quickly flew towards the water and was almost flying in it. Gyarados launched the Flamethrower, but Spearow avoided it and the Flamethrower was put out when it hit the water, creating steam.

"Peck, now!" I cried. Spearow emerged from the steam and landed the attack right in Gyarados's chest. That really angered Gyarados.

"Gyarados, use Whirlpool!"

"Spearow, get out of there!" I cried.

Spearow flew towards me and kept a close eye on the Whirlpool that was coming towards her.

"Up!" I cried. Spearow pulled up right at the moment that the Whirlpool would have hit her.

"Spearow, use Fury Attack!" I cried. Spearow flew towards Gyarados, but I looked at Misty and saw her smirk.

"Gyarados, use Hydro Pump!" she cried.

"Spearow!" I cried.

Spearow landed the attack and flew close to Gyarados, making Gyarados unable to attack her at such a close range. I almost laughed at the look on Misty's face.

"Spearow, Peck once more!" I cried. Spearow charged up the attack and it hit Gyarados. Spearow flew back towards me.

"Flamethrower!" Misty cried. I didn't even have time to command Spearow to dodge. The Flamethrower engulfed Spearow and then ended. Spearow flew in the air and then fell towards the ground at a fast speed. She was defeated.

"Return!" I cried.

"Spearow is unable to battle! Gyarados wins!" the referee declared, holding a flag towards Misty.

I thanked Spearow and attached the Pokeball back to my belt. My last chance to win this was up to Tangela. I looked at Gyarados while I lowered my hand to Tangela's Pokeball. Gyarados had a few scratches on it.

"Tangela, let's do this!" I cried, tossing my final Pokeball. I had to be careful, though. Despite being a Water Pokemon and Tangela having the advantage, Gyarados could use Flamethrower and that could be big trouble!

"Tangela! Tangela!" Tangela cried landing on the platform.

"Tangela, use Vine Whip!" I cried, trying to end this as soon as possible.

"Gyarados d-" Misty started, but she was too late to tell it to dodge. Vine Whip hit Gyarados a few times.

"Gyarados, use Flamethrower!" Misty ordered.

"Jump to the other platforms to dodge, and use Sleep Powder!" I shouted.

Tangela successfully dodged the Flamethrower and jumped up and used Sleep Powder. The Sleep Powder hit Gyarados right in the face and its eyes drooped. Gyarados yawned and fell asleep.

This was perfect! If Gyarados stayed asleep, I could win! "Tangela, use Vine Whip!" Gyarados didn't wake up, even after being attacked.

"Wake up!" Misty cried to no avail.

"Tangela, use Absorb!" Gyarados's energy was drained and Tangela regained some health. Gyarados still didn't wake up.

"Gyarados, wake up!" Misty cried again.

"Tangela, use Vine Whip once more!"

The attack still didn't wake Gyarados up. Gyarados was now covered in cuts and scratches and I was sure that its breathing was messed up.

"Gyarados, please wake up!" Misty cried. Gyarados's eyes finally snapped opened and Gyarados's breathing was uneven.

"Gyarados, use Flamethrower!" Misty said, trying to turn this around.

"Dodge it!" Tangela dodged, but was grazed a little by the attack.

"Tangela, use Stun Spore!" Tangela ran from platform to platform and hit Gyarados with the Stun Spore. Gyarados became paralyzed.

"Tangela, let's finish this. Vine Whip!" I cried. The attack hit Gyarados and Gyarados fell, fainted.

"Gyarados is unable to battle! Tangela wins! The winner is Jason!" the referee cried, pointing the flag towards me.

"Good job, Tangela." I said, returning Tangela. Tangela had done extremely well for its first battle.

I stepped off of the platform and I glanced around the gym and saw that Adam was off of the bleachers, now coming towards me, and Misty was walking over with my badge.

"Here is the Cascade Badge." Misty said, extending the cushion where it rested.

I picked up the badge and held it up. "Badge number two!" I cried as I removed my badge case and placed the badge in the case.

"Congratulations, Jason. You put up a good battle." Misty said.

"Thanks, Misty."

**Normal POV**

"How about we catch up?" Misty asked.

"Sure, I would like that." Adam said.

"Fine with me." Jason said.

Misty and the boys left the gym and walked through the city towards Misty's house. As they walked, Misty told them, "I noticed that the two of you battled very differently against me. Adam, you used speed and power to your advantage. Jason, you used cleverness and status ailments to win. It reminds me of the way your dads used to battle.

"Adam, Ash was always an offense-first kind of battler who used his Pokemons' speed to dodge. Jason, Gary was a smarter trainer who always tried to find a weakness and exploit it to win his battles. Both of you really resemble your fathers' battling styles!"

Both Adam and Jason felt a sense of pride when Misty told them that.

Eventually, the three of them arrived at Misty's house and they went inside.

"Umm…" they heard a voice trail off as they went inside. Adam and Jason looked over and saw a girl sitting in a chair with her legs dangling over the arm.

Adam and Jason both looked at the girl. She seemed to be their age, and looked like a younger version of Misty. She had smooth, fiery orange hair that went down to her waist, onyx eyes, and her skin tone was slightly more tanned than Misty's. She wore an ocean blue long sleeve shirt over a white tank top, white short shorts, and white and blue sneakers. She also had a charm bracelet on her left wrist and a necklace with a teardrop with a letter "M" engraved into it.

She remained quiet and watched the three, not knowing who the boys were.

"Adam, Jason, this is my daughter, Michelle." Misty said, breaking the silence.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Adam Ketchum." Adam greeted. Michelle's eyes widened at the sound of his name.

"And I'm Jason Oak." Jason greeted.

"I'm Michelle Waterflower. Adam, your mom is Dawn Berlitz, right? Well...Ketchum, now. She's my idol!" Michelle said. It was clear to Adam and Jason that she loved contests.

"Adam, Jason, will you two let Michelle travel with you?" Misty asked. "She celebrated her tenth birthday two days ago and she wants to travel and become a Top Coordinator."

The two seemed shocked and Michelle seemed even more shocked. "Are you serious, mom?" she asked.

"Why not?" asked Misty. "Take my word for it, traveling with other people is a lot more fun than traveling alone! Besides, all the cities that have gyms also have contests, too. So you would each be accomplishing your dreams together. What do you say?"

"Sounds like a great idea! I'm in." said Michelle.

"Same for me, if it's alright with Jason." Adam said. Adam liked the idea of traveling with a coordinator, since his dad had done it with his mom in Sinnoh, and with May in Hoenn and the Battle Frontier. His dad had learned a lot of battling techniques from these two coordinators and Adam was curious to see what he could learn from a coordinator, too.

"Fine by me." Jason said emotionlessly. He didn't care much for contests, but he could see that his vote was clearly outnumbered. He just hoped that she wouldn't slow them down.

"Thank you. It's always best for people to travel with friends. I'm sure you will all become fast friends, since our families are all friends." Misty said. She walked over to her desk and removed a Pokeball.

"Michelle, this is for you." Misty said, holding the Pokeball towards her.

Michelle grabbed the Pokeball excitedly. "My first Pokemon?" she asked, her eyes wide. Misty nodded her head. Michelle got up and hugged her mom. "Thank you so much, mom!"

Michelle released her mom and looked at the Pokeball. She spun in a circle and tossed her Pokeball saying, "Time to shine!"

"Eevee!" the Pokemon said as it appeared.

"Thank you, mom!" Michelle cried again as she saw her Pokemon.

"Well, why don't you three stay here for the night and get going in the morning? Oh, and Michelle, here." Misty said, removing a bag and handing it to her daughter.

The bag was white with an ocean design on the bottom of the bag, it was the same type of bag Misty had when she traveled.

"Everything is packed in the bag. Here is some money so you can buy-" Misty started.

"Thanks, mom. Love you." her daughter cut her off. Michelle pulled the bag onto her back. She didn't return Eevee. Instead, she carried Eevee in her arms.

"I think it would be a good idea to go to the Pokemon Center." Misty said to the kids. "Jason, your Pokemon need a rest after our gym battle. And Michelle, you need to register for your contests. I'll start making lunch while you're gone."

So the three of them left the house and headed towards the Pokemon Center.

"So Michelle, you want to be a Top Coordinator?" Adam asked as they walked.

"Yes, I do. Your mom really inspired me to become a coordinator." Michelle answered.

"Hello, may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked as they went to the front desk at the Pokemon Center.

"Yes, I would like my Pokemon healed." said Jason.

"And I would like to register for the Pokemon contests here in Kanto." Michelle added.

After Jason got his Pokemon healed and Michelle registered for her contests, the three of them walked back to Misty's house.

"So Michelle, what does your dad do?" Jason asked as they walked.

"Well, I don't know. I never met my dad, he and my mom divorced shortly after I was born. She doesn't like to talk about him." Michelle answered.

"I'm sorry." Jason said.

"It's fine, Jason."

"I know what it's like to not have a father, too." said Adam sadly.

"Yes, I heard what happened to Master Ketchum." Michelle replied. "It must be tough."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, in an unknown location...<p>

"Sir, the Mt. Moon Squad just reported in about the mission." A female's voice said through a speaker.

A man leaned forward. "Was the mission a success?"

"Failure, sir."

"What went wrong with the simplest of missions?"

"Two boys interfered. One was a spitting image of Ash Ketchum; he even had a Pikachu, and another kid helped chase them off. One-"

"How could two brats interfere with this?"

"Sir, they also reported a mysterious figure with a Fire Pokemon protected the two from an attack."

"Fine. Pass this message along to all of the forces: If those two pests interfere again, capture them and bring them to me alive...but not unharmed." he chuckled.

"Yes, sir. Understood."

**Author's Note: A lot has happened in this chapter, huh? Jason has a new badge and he and Adam have a new friend to travel with: Misty's daughter, Michelle, who wants to become a Pokemon coordinator. And it seems that someone has found out about the boys' interference with Team Rocket at Mt. Moon. This man wants them captured and he's not afraid to harm them in doing so!**

**What plans does he have for them? Where will our heroes travel to next? How will Michelle do in her contests?**

**We promise that the next chapter is going to be big, so be sure to stay tuned for the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	10. New Rivals, New Pokemon!

Jason and I woke up in the guest room. At first, I was confused about why I was smelling breakfast, but then I remembered that we were at Misty's. After getting ready, we walked out of the room and into the kitchen. Misty was cooking breakfast and Michelle was sitting at the table with Eevee by her chair.

"Morning, boys." Misty greeted as she turned off the stove.

"Morning," I replied groggily.

Jason just muttered a very unhappy, "Morning."

Michelle gave a small wave in greeting as we sat down. Once we were served our food, Misty sat down with her food.

"Michelle, just as a reminder, but you need two Pokemon to compete in a contest. One for the appeal round, and one for the battle. I suggest checking out the Cerulean Cape; there are many Water Pokemon there." Misty said, as she took a sip of her coffee.

"That's north of here, right?" I asked.

"Yes,"

"I think that Jason and I might catch one, too. We have no Water Pokemon yet."

Once we finished our breakfast, we left Misty's house. Jason and I lagged behind while Michelle walked ahead.

"Why are we walking slowly?" Jason asked stupidly.

"I need to tell my mom something. I think we should tell her that Team Rocket is back." I said. I had thought about this since we encountered Team Rocket in Mt. Moon. I decided that my mom needed to know and Michelle would need to know too.

"Are you crazy?"

Michelle glanced at us, confused as she heard Jason yell, but shrugged and continued walking.

"She deserves to know." I said quietly. "We won't tell her our secret; that we're looking for dad. We just need to let her know. Maybe the more people we tell, they sooner they start to believe us about Team Rocket."

"...I guess your right."

"...Remember what Misty said. This wasn't a coincidence, my dad disappearing and Team Rocket appearing again."

"True...okay, we'll tell her."

"Hey Michelle, we need to stop at the Pokemon Center before heading to Cerulean Cape." I said.

Michelle nodded her head, although she didn't know why we had to go there first, and we headed towards the Pokemon Center.

We walked towards the video phones and I dialled my mom and waited for a few minutes. All of us were able to see the screen so mom should be able to see us.

"Hello?" my mom's voice asked.

"Hey, mom!" I said.

My mom came into view.

"Hey, you two. Who's this?" she asked, noticing Michelle.

"Michelle Waterflower. It's nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Ketchum." Michelle greeted.

"Likewise, Michelle. Are you travelling with the boys? What's your goal?"

"Yes, I am. I want to be a coordinator. You really inspired me."

"Well, good luck in your contests, Michelle. I'll be watching you on TV!"

"Thanks!"

"Mom, we need to tell you something important." I said in a more serious tone, motioning to Jason and myself. Michelle was going to walk away, but Jason made a noise that was a sign for her to stay. 

"What is it?" my mom asked, concerned.

"Well...Adam, she's your mom...you tell her." Jason said, chickening out.

I knew why he had backed out. I remembered when we had gotten into trouble when we were younger and my mom, when she's mad...not a pretty sight.

"Mom, on our way here, we went through Mt. Moon. In Mt. Moon, we came across Team Rocket. They were searching for Moon Stones. Mom, I realized something. Dad's disappeared and Team Rocket has reassembled at around the same time. Mom, this isn't a coincidence." I explained.

Mom looked saddened by what I had just told her. "Did they try to harm you two?" she asked.

"Yes. We fought them, but when we gained the upper hand in the battle, they ordered their Pokemon to attack us directly. We were saved by some mysterious person hiding nearby and their Fire Pokemon."

She looked at us and said, "You know, Ash used to get in trouble a lot during his travels. Hopefully, it doesn't happen to you. You three be careful. When I was travelling, Team Rocket was a joke. It was Team Galactic that you had to worry about. Just be careful, because this is years later. There's no telling what Team Rocket is like nowadays. After being defeated by your father and the Elite Four all those years ago, who knows what they'll do now? Don't go facing danger alone."

"We won't,"

She looked over to something at the house and frowned. "Mamoswine, why?" she asked.

She turned back to us again. "I have to go. Mamoswine knocked over the poffins and is working on eating them all. The others are having a fit. Nice meeting you Michelle, and good luck to you. Adam, Jason, good luck. Bye." she said.

"Bye,"

"Piplup, stop!" she cried as the screen went black.

We walked out of the Pokemon Center and Michelle instantly faced us. "Okay, let me get this straight. Those Team Rocket goons are back together, your dad is missing - well, I already knew that - but you think that Team Rocket had something to do with it, and they nearly killed you?" Michelle asked.

"Yes, they are back together. We wouldn't lie about something like this." Jason said.

"And I'm pretty sure that they have my dad captured." I added.

"Wait a second, my mom told me about the story and the news did, too. What did I drag myself into?"

"Well...if I tell you, you must promise not to tell a soul. Not your mom, and definitely not my mom. Understand?" I said lowly.

"Got it," Michelle said.

"Okay. Well, I'm on my journey to be a Pokemon Master, but I'm also looking for my dad. I know that I can get him back and everyone and everything will be right again. My family's been broken and...you have no idea how much my mom and I miss him and hope that he's okay." I explained.

"Well Adam, if I knew who my dad was and this happened to him...I would do the same thing you're doing. I'll help you find him." Michelle said honestly.

I just gave a small smile. Michelle was on our side now, too. With that matter settled, we headed towards the north of Cerulean City and headed up the path towards Cerulean Cape. We crossed over Nugget Bridge along the way. I have no idea why it's called that.

"My dad caught his Krabby at Cerulean Cape." I said, starting a conversation since it was boring to walk in silence.

"There's also a lighthouse there." Jason said, remembering that he heard about a lighthouse.

"Yes, the lighthouse was owned by a guy named Bill. Bill moved away when I was young, or was I even born yet? My mom told me about him when she was there with Adam's dad." Michelle said, telling about the lighthouse and its owner.

"Hey, I was wondering..." Michelle said suddenly.

Jason and I stopped walking and looked at her oddly.

"I need to have my Eevee scanned with a Pokedex. I don't know her moves and you guys have Pokedexes."

I removed my Pokedex and pointed it at Eevee and handed it to Michelle.

The Pokedex spoke, "Eevee. The Evolution Pokemon. It has the potential to evolve into one of seven different kinds of Pokemon."

"Thanks," Michelle said, handing the Pokedex back to me as we continued on.

After a while, we were close to Cerulean Cape, when I started hearing sounds and stopped suddenly.

"Do you guys hear that?" I asked.

Jason and Michelle listened. The faint sounds of Pokemon cries could be heard.

"Sounds like a battle." Jason said.

"You know what that means." I said as a determined grin spread across my face.

"Let me guess, we're going to go see it?" Jason asked after a moment.

"Why not?" I asked.

We turned off the path a little ways before we would get to Cerulean Cape and headed towards the sounds we were hearing. When we stopped, we found a guy and girl in a battle.

"Now, Vulpix! Dodge and use Fire Spin!" the girl cried.

"Gastly, Shadow Ball." the guy said in a monotone voice.

The Shadow Ball went through the Fire Spin and slammed into Vulpix.

"That could be a contest move." Michelle commented quietly as we watched.

"Hypnosis, Gastly." the boy said. The Vulpix was put to sleep, causing the girl to frown.

"No fair, you ended the practice battle too soon. I need to practice." the girl whined.

"Yeah? Well, I don't think you want your battle ideas to get picked up on, and I don't want my strategy known, either." the guy said as he motioned towards the three of us. He must've seen us arrive.

"Oh..." the girl said, just noticing us.

Judging from how he acted and battled, I had a feeling that the boy was a trainer who took training way to serious. I remembered my dad telling me that he had met a trainer like that before. The trainer trained his Pokemon to be strong and if they were defeated, no words of appreciation were given for their hard work.

The two mysterious kids looked to be our age. They looked similar, almost like they were related.

The guy had dark red hair that covered his eyes, dark green eyes, and he was tanned. He wore a pair of black cargo pants, a purple tank top, a black and gray jacket over the shirt that was opened, and gray sneakers.

The girl had dark red hair that was the same shade as the guy's and it went down to her mid back. She also had dark pink eyes, and she was also tanned. She wore a pink short sleeve tight shirt, a red bubble vest over the pink shirt, a white scarf tied around her neck, white short shorts, red knee high socks, and pink below the knee boots.

She reminded me of a candy cane and I wondered if Jason and Michelle thought the same thing.

"You two, you're trainers, right?" the guy asked motioning to me and Jason.

"Yeah, we are." Jason replied.

"A one-on-one battle with each of you. I challenge you first, spike-head."

Jason didn't quite catch the "spike head" comment, which shocked me. If Jason had caught the comment, he would've been mad.

"I accept." Jason said, walking over to one side of the field.

Michelle sat down on the ground to watch the battle and the girl did, too. I remained standing to watch the battle.

"Graveler, go." the guy said, tossing a Pokeball.

"Graveler." Graveler said.

Jason recorded the data into his Pokedex and I recorded the data into my Pokedex, too. Jason smirked and removed a Pokeball from his belt.

"Charmander, let's do this!" Jason cried, tossing his Pokeball.

"Char! Charmander!" Charmander cried looking at Graveler.

"A Fire Pokemon against a Rock/Ground Type? It's like you're begging me to beat you. You know nothing about battling!" the guy said to Jason.

"Charmander, Metal Claw!" Jason commanded, gritting his teeth from the insult.

"Graveler, dodge."

Charmander's claw glowed and it ran towards Graveler. Graveler went to dodge, but wasn't quick enough since it was such a slow Pokemon. The attack did a good amount on Graveler, since Steel type attacks are strong against Rock Pokemon.

"Graveler, Rock Throw."

"Smokescreen!"

Graveler started the attack. But soon, Smokescreen covered the area and the attack stopped since Graveler couldn't see.

"Clear the smoke with Flamethrower! Then use Metal Claw!" Jason cried. A Flamethrower came and burned through the smoke, then Charmander was running towards Graveler.

"Grab it, Graveler!" Charmander slammed into Graveler with the Metal Claw once again, but Graveler grabbed Charmander immediately afterwards.

"How about we heat this rock up, Charmander? Flamethrower on Graveler's feet!" Jason yelled. Charmander shot the attack at Graveler's feet and after a few minutes, its feet were glowing slightly and Graveler felt it hurting.

"Rock Pokemon may be resistant to Fire attacks," said Jason, "But heat it high enough, and even a rock will melt!"

"Drop it and use Strength." said the boy.

"Metal Claw." Jason countered.

The Graveler charged at Charmander, but Charmander jumped and hit Graveler with the Metal Claw. Graveler fell to the ground, fainted.

"Way to go, Charmander!" Jason cried, praising his partner and returning him. "And you said that I knew nothing about battling? Type advantage doesn't always predict the winner of a match!"

The mysterious boy returned his Pokemon without saying a word in reply to Jason, nor a word of satisfaction to his Pokemon. It seemed like my gut was right about him, he was one of those trainers who cared for nothing but winning.

I approached the other side of the field and waited. It was my turn to face this guy.

"Gastly, go." the guy said, tossing a Pokeball.

"Gastly." Gastly said spookily.

"Bulbasaur, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Bulba! Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur cried happily.

"Razor Leaf!" I called. Bulbasaur launched the attack, but Gastly vanished and reappeared right next to Bulbasaur.

"Shadow Ball, Gastly." Gastly charged the Shadow Ball and launched it. Bulbasaur was thrown a few feet.

"Now, Confuse Ray."

"Dodge!" I cried, hoping to get Bulbasaur out of the way. But it was too late. The Confuse Ray hit Bulbasaur and it became confused.

"Snap out of it!" I yelled. "Use Leech Seed!" But Bulbasaur couldn't hear me and hurt itself in its confusion.

"End this with Will-O-Wisp." he said. Bulbasaur was still confused and the attack hit Bulbasaur, knocking it out.

"You did good. Take a rest." I said, returning my partner.

Once again, the guy returned his Pokemon without a word. Jason and Michelle approached me while the girl that we still didn't know approached the boy.

"You're pitiful. How many badges do you have?" the guy asked me.

"I have two, and I am NOT pitiful!" I yelled.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Adam Ketchum," I said.

"'Ketchum?' As in, Ash Ketchum, The Pokemon Master?" he said in disbelief. He must've noticed the resemblance. "Don't tell me YOU'RE the son of Master Ketchum! What a shame, you don't live up to his name, power, skill, or reputation at all. Not even close."

I kept my eyes closed, so it looked like they were showing no emotion. But really, what that guy had said really hurt. I knew that I wasn't pitiful, I just didn't have the experience of how to fight against Ghost Pokemon yet.

The girl next to him shot him a look, but he just ignored her.

"Don't talk to him like that." Jason said coldly, knowing that the comment had hurt me.

"Whatever, spike-head." he retorted.

"'Spike-head?' My name is Jason Oak!" Jason cried.

"Oh, Professor Oak's boy?" He then turned and looked at Michelle. "So you must be...something Waterflower, right? You look like the Cerulean gym leader." the guy asked as his eyes lazily moved to Michelle.

"I'm Michelle Waterflower and I'm going to become a coordinator." Michelle said.

"Well, well, well. I run into the kids of Kanto's three most well-known trainers all at the same time? What are the odds?" he said with an amused look on his face.

The girl standing next to him finally decided to speak up. "Hi! I'm Nikki...well, Nicole. Don't ever call me Nicole, got it? That's my brother, Trevor, excuse his manners...well, never mind, because he has none." she introduced. "You're Michelle, right? I'm a coordinator, too." the girl now known as Nikki said. Nice for her to step in, it looked like her brother had a lot of insults for people.

"Nice to meet you, Nikki. Looking forward to seeing you in contests." Michelle said.

"I have one ribbon so far. Do you have any?" Nikki asked.

"No, not yet."

"Nicole, let's go." the guy known as her brother Trevor interrupted.

"Don't call me Nicole!" she protested.

"Whatever, let's go."

"No. Until you apologize, I'm not going anywhere." Nikki said, frowning and placing her hands on her hips.

Trevor glanced at us. "Sorry," and with that, he started walking away back towards Cerulean City, where we had come from.

"That's how he apologizes. I'm really sorry, but that's just him, not you guys." Nikki said, sighing.

"You might want to catch up to him before he leaves you." Jason said.

She glanced towards her brother and saw that he was a good ways away.

"Bye! Hope to see you in a contest, Michelle! Adam and Jason, good luck in your gym battles. We'll meet again!" Nikki cried as she skipped and followed her brother.

"Wow, those two are total opposites." Jason muttered once Nikki was out of hearing range.

"That's for sure. She's so friendly and happy, compared to him. Anyway, let's go." I said, distracted.

"You okay, Adam?" Jason asked. He was concerned since he knew those comments Trevor made to made would affect me.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

We continued to head towards Cerulean Cape. Once arriving at the beach area, we saw that it was very packed. When my dad first came here, it was a very quiet place. It had really grown in popularity over the years.

"We should go swimming...later," Michelle said, remembering that we were here to look for Water Pokemon first.

"Yeah, I agree. Let's try to find some Pokemon." Jason said, glancing around.

We walked further down the beach and Michelle walked ahead while Jason and I followed a little ways behind her. I could hear Michelle talking to her Eevee, who was walking beside her.

"What kind of Pokemon should we look for, Eevee?" Michelle asked. She and Eevee had really hit it off and become fast friends, almost like they were made for each other.

A deep bond with your Pokemon is very important when training it, because the more you understand how your Pokemon behaves and lives and battles, the stronger the two of you can become, thus forming a powerful friendship. My dad's relationship with Pikachu was living proof of that.

"Hmm. I could always try to catch a Starmie. They're good at battling and appeals would be amazing with the moves Starmies know. Maybe a Poliwag? They're cute, can be used in bad situations, and appeals would be good, too. Hmm, should I get a Psyduck and hope it's not like my mom's? That would suck if it was. Poor duck always got yelled at. Maybe a Golduck? Battles would be good with that Pokemon, it can really fight!...but could we win against a Golduck? After all, it is your first battle, whichever Pokemon we decide to go against." Michelle said, thinking out loud.

The further we walked down the beach, the less people there were, and the sandy ground had some rocks in it. As we climbed over these rocks, Jason glanced around and saw something.

"I'm gonna catch that Golduck." Jason said, motioning towards a Golduck that was sitting on a few rocks. Jason walked towards the Golduck while removing Tangela's Pokeball from his belt.

"Tangela, let's go!" he cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Tangela!" Tangela cried, landing in the sand.

The Golduck glanced at Tangela and waited. It was ready for a battle.

"Tangela, use Vine Whip!" Jason cried. Tangela's vines shot out and the Golduck dodged, but the vine locked onto its ankle. Tangela ran backwards and the Golduck was pulled down.

"Alright, Tangela! Now use Stun Spore!" Tangela ran towards the Golduck and tried to use Stun Spore, but the Golduck glanced at Tangela as its eyes glowed, and then Tangela was in the air from a Confusion attack.

"Vine Whip, Tangela!" But Tangela couldn't move against the Confusion and was driven into the ground.

"Tang!" Tangela hopped up. Tangela was hurt, but wasn't about to give up.

"Okay Tangela, let's get this over with! Use Vine Whip once more!" Tangela's vines shot towards Golduck and hit it a few times. The Golduck had taken a good amount of damage, but Jason felt he needed to do one final thing before trying to capture it.

"Sleep Powder!" he ordered. Tangela ran close to Golduck and used Sleep Powder before it had time to move. Its eyes drooped and soon, it was asleep. He tossed a Pokeball and watched as the beam engulfed Golduck. After a few seconds, the Pokeball stopped, indicating he had caught the Golduck.

"Alright, Tangela! We did it!" Jason cried, praising the Grass Type Pokemon. He returned Tangela and retrieved the Pokeball that contained Golduck. He attached the two Pokeballs to his belt.

"Way to go, Jason." I said. "Seen any Pokemon you want to catch, Michelle?"

"No, not yet. There are many choices and I have to be careful. This will be Eevee's first battle ever. Not too tough of an opponent." Michelle replied as she looked at the beach.

"Squirtle!"

We glanced behind us and saw that a Squirtle was looking at us. It wanted to battle.

"You can battle Squirtle if you want, Adam." Michelle said, seeing that I was waiting to see if she wanted to battle the Water Pokemon.

I lowered my hand to my Pokeballs, but remembered that Bulbasaur had fainted from my last battle.

"Pidgey? No. Charmander is a no. Bulbasaur has fainted, and now recovering. Pikachu?" I muttered. I didn't want to use Pikachu since Pikachu had a lot of experience, but it seemed like the only way possible.

I shook my head and grabbed Pidgey's Pokeball. Pidgey was able to do good against Misty's Pokemon, so Pidgey could take on a Squirtle.

"Pidgey, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Pid! Pidgey!" Pidgey cried.

"Pidgey, use Gust!" Pidgey created a Gust, but the Squirtle hid in its shell. Then it shot a Water Gun from inside of its shell towards Pidgey.

"Dodge it! Then Quick Attack!" Pidgey successfully dodged the Water Gun and Squirtle popped out of its shell. Pidgey landed the attack on Squirtle, who stumbled back slightly.

Squirtle used another Water Gun and it headed towards Pidgey. "Pidgey, dodge! Then use Gust!" Pidgey dodged successfully again, but instead of a Gust, Pidgey used Twister.

"Way to go Pidgey! You learned how to use Twister!" I cried as the Twister hit Squirtle. Squirtle fell onto the ground and wasn't showing any signs of getting up. I threw a Pokeball and Squirtle was engulfed into the ball. After it wiggled twice, the Pokeball was still; I had caught Squirtle.

"Good work, Pidgey!" I cried as I returned my Pokemon. I walked and grabbed Squirtle's Pokeball and attached it to my belt. I realized that I now own a Bulbasaur, a Charmander, AND a Squirtle, just like dad used to have!

"So which Pokemon are you looking for?" Jason asked Michelle.

"I think I want to find a Poliwag." Michelle answered.

"Well Michelle, you're in luck. Look, there's a Poliwag at the shore line." I said, pointing towards the Poliwag.

Michelle looked over and saw the Poliwag. She headed towards the Pokemon and Eevee jumped into position for battle.

The Poliwag looked over at Eevee and then at Michelle. "Poli!" it cried, jumping out of the water and onto the sand. It wasted no time to attack with Bubble.

"Eevee, use Sand Attack to cancel out the attack!" Michelle cried. Eevee successfully cancelled out the Bubble attack with the sand. Being on a sandy beach made the Sand Attack even easier to use!

"Now, Eevee! Use Bite!" Eevee ran towards Poliwag and clamped her teeth on Poliwag's tail.

"Poli!" Poliwag cried out. The Poliwag turned slightly and used Water Gun. Eevee got hit and released its grip on the tail.

"Quick Attack!" Eevee ran towards Poliwag and slammed into Poliwag. Poliwag ran back at Eevee.

"Eevee, dodge it!" Poliwag was using Body Slam and when it would have hit Eevee, she dodged.

"Great job! Use Sand Attack!" Eevee quickly shielded herself since sand was everywhere.

"Now, Quick Attack!" Eevee ran through the sand and connected with Poliwag. Michelle removed a Pokeball and tossed it. Poliwag was engulfed by the beam and the ball wiggled once and then stopped.

"Yay! Way to go, Eevee! You won your first battle!" Michelle cried as she picked up her partner.

Jason was actually shocked by her battle. She had good strategies.

"Good job, Michelle." I said.

"Thanks,"

"That was a good first battle." Jason complimented.

"Thanks," she said again.

Michelle picked up her Pokeball and attached the Pokeball to her bracelet; the so-called charm bracelet was actually a bracelet that allowed your Pokeballs to be attached to it like charms once the balls were shrunken down. Many of the girls nowadays used those instead of belts.

"Well, how about we go swimming now? Let's let the Pokemon out so they can get to know us and the others?" I asked.

"I'm in!" Michelle cried.

"Sounds good to me." Jason replied.

We made our way back up to the beach and to the old lighthouse, since that's where the changing rooms and bathrooms were now housed.

I walked out in black trunks with white stripes down the sides. Jason wore orange trunks with a black stripes down the sides. Michelle wore a light purple bikini. We walked to the beach and released all of our Pokemon. The Pokemon ran around and played with each other while some others swam with us while we played in the water.

After a long day of fun and swimming, getting to know our new Pokemon, and our Pokemon getting to know the new Pokemon, we headed back to the lighthouse. After we changed into our regular clothes, we walked back to Cerulean City. We were tired from the long day.

"My mom said that she'll let us stay for as long as we need." Michelle said, as she adjusted Eevee in her arms.

We entered back into Cerulean City as the sun started to set.

"My mom should be home by now." she muttered as we headed towards her house. She opened the door and found her mom in the living room watching something on the TV.

"Hey, you three." Misty greeted.

"Hey, mom. We're going to stay here for tonight." Michelle said.

"That's fine. I think you three will be staying for a few more days, though."

"Why's that?"

"The first Pokemon Contest is here in Cerulean City in three days." Misty announced.

"Really?" Michelle cried excitedly.

"Yes. Oh, and Michelle? You still have to buy an outfit for your contests."

"Yeah..."

"What did you three do today?"

"We each caught a Water Pokemon and had a day at the beach." Jason said.

Misty's eyes lit up. "What did you catch?" she asked.

"Golduck," Jason said.

"Lucky. My Psyduck still hasn't evolved yet." Misty muttered.

"I got a Squirtle." I said.

"Just like your dad. Better be careful, it could be a part of the Squirtle Squad." Misty joked.

"I got a Poliwag." Michelle said.

"Just like I used to have. Very good choices for all of you."

After another hour, Misty had fixed supper and soon we were gathered together in the den, talking.

"What did your mom mean, 'get an outfit?'" Jason asked.

"You see, in Sinnoh, you have to dress up for contests. Over the years, the other regions liked the idea and made it a requirement for the coordinators to dress up for contests. This is what I heard from some news program called, 'Your Pokemon are Appealing and You Must Be, Too.' If you ask me, that was kinda mean." Michelle explained.

My mom had told me that if I ever wanted to compete in a contest, to tell her and she would send me an outfit. My dad had participated with my mom in contests before, but I decided that I wouldn't compete.

"I think I'm going to go get an outfit tomorrow, and then practice. The contest is only three days away and I need to get ready!" Michelle said excitedly.

**Author's Note: And so, our three heroes have each caught a new Pokemon, met two new rivals, and Michelle has found out about her first contest.**

**Stay tuned for the next chapter of Pokemon NG, when Michelle will compete in her first Pokemon contest! How well will she perform? Find out next time!**


	11. Michelle's First Contest

**Normal POV**

"Showtime, Poliwag!" Michelle cried, as she spun and tossed her Pokeball into the air.

"Poli!" Poliwag cried, landing on the ground.

Adam and Michelle had decided to have a practice battle. Adam hoped to learn something from practicing with Michelle. Ash had learned a lot of new battling techniques from Dawn, so Adam was hoping to learn a thing or two from a coordinator as well.

Michelle was currently working on her appeals first, and then she would have the battle with Adam.

"Poliwag, use Bubble!" Michelle cried. Poliwag shot bubbles up into the sky.

"Jump and pop the bubbles with your tail!" Poliwag jumped and popped the bubbles. Poliwag landed on the ground and water droplets fell down on the Water Pokemon.

Michelle had a few combinations in mind, but only planned to try out two. She had tried out the others earlier today.

"Poliwag, use Rain Dance!" Michelle cried. Clouds formed and rain poured down.

"Now, Hypnosis!" Poliwag's eyes glowed a blue color and they popped against the rain that was falling.

"Awesome, it worked!" Michelle cried happily.

"That was different, Michelle. I've never seen that done before." Adam complimented.

"Thanks, Adam. Ready for the practice battle?" Michelle asked, returning Poliwag.

"Yeah, I'm ready." Adam said as he walked to the other side of the field.

"Showtime, Eevee!" Michelle cried to her Pokemon standing beside her. Eevee ran onto the field and waited.

"Charmander, let's show 'em!" Adam cried, tossing his Pokeball.

"Char! Char!" Charmander cried. Adam's Charmander had learned Metal Claw earlier that day after some practice. Since Jason's Charmander had already learned it, Adam felt that his Charmander should, too. It would help against Rock Pokemon.

"You can go first, Adam." Michelle called.

"Charmander, use Flamethrower!" Adam commanded.

Michelle smirked, glad that he had called out that move. "Eevee, Shadow Ball!" she cried.

The Flamethrower shot towards Eevee while Eevee charged the Shadow Ball.

"Vee!" Eevee cried, launching the Shadow Ball towards the Flamethrower.

The two moves fought for dominance and finally the two moves cancelled out each other, causing a blast of smoke.

"Looks like you caught onto that contest move you saw." Adam said.

"Yep, but I've always had a move like that in mind. After all, many coordinators use it." Michelle replied.

"Charmander, Smokescreen!"

"Eevee, use Sand Attack!"

The two moves combined to make a huge cloud of smoke and sand.

"Shadow Ball!"

Before Adam could call out for Charmander to dodge, the Shadow Ball headed towards Charmander and hit him.

"Char!" Charmander cried.

"Quick Attack and Bite!"

"Charmander, wait until Eevee is close, then use Metal Claw!"

Eevee was quickly coming towards Charmander as her teeth started to glow. Charmander's claw started to glow, too. The two moves collided with one another, causing dust to stir up and both Pokemon to be hurt.

"That's enough. I'm not going to spoil any more of my moves. I want to surprise people if I make it to the battle round." Michelle said as she picked up Eevee in her arms.

"I'm sure you'll make it to the battle round, Michelle." Adam said, returning Charmander and walking over towards his friend.

The two headed back to Misty's house, where Jason was.

"Mom, we're back!" Michelle yelled as she closed the door.

"Did you have to yell?" Jason asked as he sat up on the couch.

"What were you doing? Sleeping?" Michelle asked.

"Yes, I was sleeping. You two went to practice and I was tired." Jason replied, annoyed.

"Sorry, didn't know you were sleeping. Do you know where my mom is?" Michelle asked.

"No. The last time I saw her, she was in the kitchen, I think."

**Michelle's POV**

"Okay. Thanks, I guess." I muttered as I left the living room.

I walked into the kitchen to find it empty. I then decided to head to my mom's room.

"Mom?" I asked as I opened her door.

"Hi, Michelle. Are you and Adam done with practicing?" she asked.

"Yeah, are we going to get my contest outfit?"

"Yes, Michelle. We'll go now."

My mom walked out of her room and I followed her back down to the living room.

"Hey guys, can you watch Eevee for me?" I asked.

"Sure." the boys replied.

My mom and I left the house and walked towards this shop that sold anything you could need; dressy-clothes-wise. We walked for fifteen minutes and stopped in front of a store called Dresses & Tuxes.

"So Michelle, what type of outfit are you looking for?" my mom asked, opening the door.

"I'm not sure, to be honest." I replied as the cold air conditioning hit my bare legs.

I looked around the store. I had only been in this store maybe two times at the most. Clothes were everywhere. From casual attire to formal attire. We walked through the store and I picked up a few outfits before heading to the dressing rooms.

I walked out wearing a gray dress that came to my knees. A black ribbon was around my waist. I also had on black gloves and black flats. It looked too bland for my taste.

"Well, Michelle?" my mom asked.

"Gray is not my color." I said as I walked back to the dressing room to try on another outfit.

I tried on another dress that ended below my knees. It was white and red.

"No, too much like a candy cane." I muttered.

I tried on a few more dresses and came to a conclusion: Dresses didn't suit me. I walked back through the store and finally found an outfit that I liked. I grabbed the outfit and walked to the dressing room once again.

"I like this one. You like this one?" I asked mom, walking out and doing a small twirl.

I wore a gypsy-looking outfit. The top was cut a few inches above my bellybutton, a skirt that was to my ankles flowed around my legs as I twirled, and I was bare footed right now. The top was white with a dark blue border. The skirt was white, too; except for the waistband that was dark blue. Lines of dark blue beads and white beads that were attached to strings made sleeves down my arms.

"I like it, Michelle. You look beautiful! Now all you need are a few accessories." my mom said. My mom walked off and returned with a dark blue and white beaded hairpiece and white heels.

"Heels? Seriously, mom?" I asked looking at the white heels.

"With the heels, you won't trip over the skirt, since it's loose." my mom said.

"I can't walk in heels. I'll break my neck...or legs!"

"I couldn't walk in heels at first, either. But now I can."

"Fine..."

I took the heels and made sure they fitted with the outfit. I also made sure the hairpiece fitted too. Then I looked at myself in the mirror and cried, "I love this outfit!"

My mom paid for the outfit and we headed back to the house.

* * *

><p>I stood in the changing rooms adjusting the hairpiece in my hair. I looked at my outfit once more and nodded, pleased with how I looked. I had to talk to Adam, Jason, and my mom before the contest. I made my way to the waiting area and found them with their backs to me.<p>

"Hey guys, hey mom." I said, walking up behind them.

"Hey sweetie." my mom said turning around.

Adam and Jason turned around and looked shocked. I wasn't surprised they were shocked. After all I send off the tomboy look most of the time and now I'm in a skirt and a top that showed my stomach add heels, too. I looked like a girly girl.

"Are you ready?" my mom asked.

"Yeah, I'm ready. A little nervous, though." I replied, giving a small smile.

"You'll do great, Michelle." Adam said suddenly.

"I hope so."

"Don't worry about it Michelle, you'll do fine. After all, you've watched Adam's mom in some contests." Jason said.

"Thanks, guys. I needed that." I said, giving a small smile.

"Where's Eevee?" Jason asked.

I held up a Pokeball and said, "She's in here for now."

"We have to go and get our seats now." my mom said.

"Okay, bye."

They left the waiting area and I felt a presence approaching me.

"Hi, hi!" Nikki cried as I turned around.

"Hey, Nikki. That's so pretty." I said, complimenting her outfit.

"Mine? Michelle, YOUR outfit is so pretty!"

Nikki wore a dress that was red at the top and faded to pink as it went down. The dress ended at her knees. On her feet were white flats. She also had white gloves that went to her elbows with a pink design on them. The design was at the top of the gloves and the wrists. I could see that two lines crisscrossed and I saw that a small heart was made when they connected. She also had a pink choker around her neck.

"So, ready for your first contest?" Nikki asked as she placed a Pokeball in the ball capsule.

"Yeah. I'm a little nervous, though." I replied, placing a heart sticker on my ball capsule.

"It's understandable, since it is your first contest, after all. This is my third contest. I lost my first contest, but won my second contest. I hope to win my second ribbon."

"I hope to win my first ribbon." I replied.

A buzz was heard and all the coordinators in the room looked at the television. The contest was starting.

"Welcome to the Cerulean City Pokemon Contest! I'm your host, Jillian!"

A young adult was standing in the middle of the stage. She had reddish brown hair that fell to her shoulders in soft curls, sky blue eyes, and she was pale. She wore a trench-coat that was tight fitting with a belt on her mid section to close the coat. You could see a medium shade of green showing from underneath the coat and her feet were covered with black boots.

"As you all know, the objective for each coordinator is to give a good show with unique moves! Let's meet our wonderful judges!"

"First off, we have Shawn Contesta!" Jillian announced.

"Glad to be here and I can't wait to see what everyone has in store for us." Shawn said.

Shawn had black hair that was slightly spiked, brown eyes, and he was tanned. He wore a suit jacket that was black with a red shirt, and black tie. He was the grandson of Mr. Contesta, who was a judge when Dawn was first competing in contests.

"Next, we have the President of the Pokemon Fan Club, Mr. Tatsu!" Jillian announced.

Mr. Tatsu was a short, chubby guy. He had squinted eyes, rosy cheeks, and a smile on his face. He had brown hair that was cut very short and a brown, bushy mustache. He wore a jacket that was white and under the jacket was a shirt that had a Pichu on it.

"Pokemon Contests and Pokemon! This will be fun!" Mr. Tatsu said.

"And lastly, we have our very own Nurse Joy!" Jillian announced.

"I can't wait to see the moves and Pokemon. Good luck to all of you." Nurse Joy said.

"Well folks, you've meet the judges...NOW it's time for you to meet the coordinators! Entry number one, you're up!" Jillian cried.

The contest went on for a while with many combinations. I was impressed and my nerves were trying to get the best of me.

"Well, I'm up next." Nikki said, walking towards the door.

"Good luck, Nikki." I said.

She nodded and walked out of the room.

"Next up, we have Nikki from Neon Town!" Jillian cried.

The curtains parted and Nikki stepped out. She smiled to the crowd and jumped down the stairs, landing gracefully.

"Nikki enters with grace! Let's see who she uses and what she has in store for us!"

"Vulpix, let's wow them!" Nikki cried, as she tossed a Pokeball straight into the air.

The Pokeball opened to reveal a fire. As the fire disappeared, Vulpix appeared and landed on the ground.

"Vulpix enters with a fiery entrance!"

_Man, people make some cheesy sayings. _I thought.

"Vulpix, use Will-O-Wisp!" Nikki cried. Vulpix used the attack, and now balls of fire were floating around Vulpix in a circle.

"Now, Vulpix! Use Attract!" Vulpix caused hearts to appear and the hearts formed with the Will-O-Wisp. Now flaming hearts were floating around.

"Wonderful! The two moves have made hearts that are on fire!" Jillian cried.

"Finish it with Energy Ball!" Vulpix charged up the ball of energy and shot it at the flaming hearts. The Energy Ball hit the hearts and caused them to explode. Embers and sparkles fell towards Vulpix and Nikki.

"What a wonderful performance!" Jillian cried. The crowd burst into applause.

"The moves were timed well. The attacks blended well, too." Shawn said.

"Vulpix looked like she was having fun! The performance made me smile!" Mr. Tatsu cried, smiling.

"This was very catching. From the entrance to the finish." Nurse Joy said.

Nikki walked back into the room and seemed to release a breath.

"That was a good performance, Nikki." I said, walking over to her.

"Thanks, Michelle." Nikki said, sitting down.

My turn would be coming soon.

"When do you go?" Nikki asked.

"After this guy's finished." I said.

"Good luck, Michelle." Nikki said.

I walked out of the room and towards the stage as the coordinator ahead of me finished. I waited behind the curtains.

"Next up, we have Michelle Waterflower from Cerulean City, making her contest debut!" Jillian cried.

The curtains rose and I ran out and jumped down the stairs.

"Michelle enters with grace! What does she have in store for us?"

"Showtime, Poliwag!" I cried, spinning and tossing the Pokeball. The Pokeball opened to reveal a heart. Poliwag landed on the stage once the heart vanished.

"Poliwag enters cutely!"

"Poliwag, use Rain Dance!" I cried. Clouds formed and rain started falling...only above Poliwag, though.

"Now, Poliwag! Use fountain!"

Yes, fountain was a move. A Water Gun, to be exact. Poliwag used Water Gun while aiming at the ground and shot up into the air. I had practised and Poliwag got it right the first time.

"Poli!" Poliwag cried, shooting into the sky.

"Jump and use Hypnosis!" Rain Dance was still going on. Poliwag stopped using Water Gun and twirled as the Water Gun stopped. Poliwag looked at everyone as its eyes glowed blue. Poliwag landed gracefully as the rain ended.

"What a wonderful water show!" Jillian cried as the crowd cheered for me. I felt very proud and happy.

"Very unique and practiced well. Wonderful performance for your first contest." Shawn said.

"Poliwag looked so happy! Wonderful!" Mr. Tastu cried smiling.

"What a fun and great way to show off Poliwag. A very good job for your first-ever performance." Nurse Joy said.

I walked back to the waiting area and Nikki ran over.

"Michelle, that was amazing! How did you ever come up with that?" she asked.

"I have a good idol, and I used some of her moves that I've seen before and crafted them into my own." I replied.

"Who's your idol?"

"Sorry, it's a secret."

"No fair!" Nikki cried, pouting.

Everyone was done performing. Now we were waiting to see who would move on.

"Now the time has come! Here are the eight coordinators who will be moving onto the second round!" Jillian cried.

Some guy, some girl, some guy, Nikki, some girl, some girl, me, and some guy.

"YES!" I cried happily.

"Made it!" Nikki cried happily.

"Congratulations to the eight who made it!" Jillian cried.

The coordinators who didn't make it past the first round gathered their things and left. Now it was just the eight of us, along with the friends and family of ours.

Nikki walked over to her brother who had just walked in. I looked and saw my mom walk in with Adam and Jason following.

"Good job, Michelle." my mom said, hugging me.

"Thanks, mom. I can't believe it! I made it to the battle round!" I cried happily.

"Good job, Michelle. Good luck in the battles." Adam said.

I smiled at him and nodded.

"Not bad. Good luck, you're gonna need it." Jason said.

"Now, above me is the screen. The coordinators have been randomly paired up against one another. Here are the battles for the first battle round."

I glanced at the screen to see who I would be facing off against first.

"Looks like you're going against a guy named Greg." my mom said.

I nodded my head.

Nikki walked over towards me and Trevor trailed behind her.

"Hi, I'm Nikki." Nikki greeted my mom.

"Hello, Nikki. That was a wonderful performance." my mom said.

"Thank you, Misty."

"Yeah. Good job, Nikki. And good luck." Adam said.

"Thanks," Nikki said, nodding her head. Trevor remained silent, as did Adam and Jason.

"We have to get back to our seats. Good luck, both of you." my mom said.

My mom, Adam, and Jason left.

"You might want to get back to your seat too, Trev." Nikki said, facing her brother.

"Don't call me Trev. I'm going," he said. Trevor turned to leave, but turned back around. He muttered something to Nikki and she just nodded her head. He then left the room.

"Are you two twins?" I asked.

"Why do you ask?" Nikki asked.

"You two look the same. The only difference is your eye color."

"Yes, we're twins."

"Okay. Sorry if that was just out there. It was bugging me."

"No problem, we get asked that a lot."

The room was now filled with only the coordinators. I would be battling second. The first battle started and soon ended with a girl named Rochelle and her Wartortle being the winners.

"Good luck, Michelle. Hey, make sure you make it to the finals. We're gonna battle." Nikki said.

I nodded my head and walked out of the room. I walked onto the stage and saw Greg already there. We released our Pokemon and were ready to go. We were pretty even until the end...

"Quick Attack!" I cried to Eevee.

"Take Down, Ponyta!"

Eevee shot towards Ponyta and Ponyta charged towards Eevee. Both Pokemon were getting closer.

"Now, Bite!" I cried. Eevee jumped into the air to avoid the Take Down and with Quick Attack still going, the Bite was coming quickly! Her teeth glowed and she fell towards Ponyta and latched on.

The buzzer went off and I snapped my head towards the screen as Jillian cried "Time's up!"

"The winner is...Michelle!" Jillian announced.

My points were halfway gone while Greg's were slightly lower. The third battle went on and the winner was Wen and his Jigglypuff. Nikki and a guy named Kyle were now battling and Nikki was winning.

"Electabuzz, use Thunder Punch!" Nikki cried.

"Meowth, use Slash!" Kyle cried.

The two moves collided with one another causing dust to fly everywhere.

"Electabuzz, Swift!" Nikki's Electabuzz jumped into the air and used Swift before Kyle had time to react. Then the buzzer went off.

"The winner is...Nikki!" Jillian announced.

"That concludes the first round of the battles. Now to see who will be facing off in the second round of battles!" Jillian cried.

"Good battle, Nikki." I said to her backstage.

"Thanks, Michelle. You did great, too." Nikki said.

"Here are the match-ups!"

I was going against Rochelle and Nikki was going against Wen.

"Wartortle, use Water Gun!"

"Eevee, Shadow Ball!"

Eevee's Shadow Ball tore through the Water Gun to my surprise, and Rochelle was even more surprised. The Shadow Ball slammed into Wartortle, causing her to lose more points.

"Skull Bash!"

"Jump, Eevee!"

Wartortle ran towards Eevee and Eevee jumped to avoid.

"Use-" I started, but the sound of the buzzer cut me off.

"Time's up! The coordinator moving onto the finals is...Michelle!" Jillian announced.

The crowd cheered loudly. I was very shocked. I was doing the best I could, but never thought that I would make it this far in my very first contest! I walked backstage and Nikki hugged me.

"Good job! Now I'm gonna win this battle and we're gonna battle for that ribbon!" she said, pulling away.

"Yeah!" I cried, agreeing.

Nikki and Wen were currently battling. Nikki was winning, but it wasn't that much of a lead. Wen and his Jigglypuff were putting on a good defense.

"Electabuzz, Swift!"

"Hyper Voice, Jigglypuff!"

Jigglypuff's attack made the Swift's stars burst and glitter fall down. It was very pretty.

"Low Kick!" Electabuzz ran and hit Jigglypuff. Fighting Type attacks are super-effective on Normal Pokemon.

"Jiggly!" Jigglypuff cried. Jigglypuff didn't get back up and a buzzer went off.

"The coordinator moving onto the finals is Nikki!" Jillian announced. The crowd cheered.

Nikki returned to the room and walked over to me. "Let's give it our all, okay?"

"Okay. I will as long as you do, too." I replied.

"Oh, I will, Michelle."

After a few minutes, it was time for our battle. We walked onto the stage and took our sides.

"It's time for the finals! To my left is Michelle and to my right Nikki! Five minutes on the clock and...BEGIN!" Jillian cried.

"Electabuzz, let's wow them!" Nikki cried, tossing her Pokeball. Electabuzz appeared, surrounded by lightning bolts.

"Showtime, Eevee!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball. Eevee appeared as flower petals surrounded her.

"Electabuzz, use Swift!" Nikki cried.

"Eevee, use Quick Attack!"

Eevee glowed white and ran towards Electabuzz. As she ran, she burst through the stars from Swift and slammed into Electabuzz.

"Thunder Punch!"

"Jump!"

Eevee went to jump, but Thunder Punch intercepted her leap in mid-air and stopped her, knocking her to the ground.

"Vee!" Eevee cried.

"Shadow Ball, Eevee!"

"Electro Ball, Electabuzz!"

The two moves collided causing sparkles to fall.

"Eevee, use Quick Attack and Bite!" Eevee glowed white as she sped towards Electabuzz and her teeth started glowing.

"Thunder Punch!"

"Cancel out the attack!"

Eevee clamped down onto the hand that would've used Thunder Punch and refused to let go. Nikki looked shocked by this defense move.

I looked at the points. I was winning, but it was a small lead. Nikki wasn't too far behind me and she could easily come back and win.

"Shadow Ball!" Eevee opened up her mouth and used Shadow Ball and jumped into the air and flipped then landed, causing Nikki to lose more points.

"Now that's a Shadow Ball launched with some impressive acrobatics!" said Jillian.

"Low Kick!"

"Quick Attack to dodge!"

Electabuzz was heading towards Eevee and Eevee quickly moved to avoid to attack. Nikki's points went down slightly.

"Use Swift to get back in the lead!" Nikki yelled. The attack headed towards Eevee.

"Eevee, jump!" Eevee jumped into the air and flipped then landed on the ground, avoiding yet another attack. "Now, Bite!"

"Get ready for a Low Kick." Nikki whispered to her Pokemon.

Eevee headed towards Electabuzz while Electabuzz stood still.

"Now!" Nikki cried. Electabuzz used Low Kick and slammed into Eevee.

"Eevee!" I cried. Eevee got up and nodded that she was okay.

"Sand Attack!" Eevee made a sand camouflage so Electabuzz couldn't really see Eevee.

"Now, Shadow Ball!" The Shadow Ball shot out of the sand and slammed into Electabuzz.

"Try to clear the sand with Swift!" Nikki said to Electabuzz.

"Quick-" I started saying. But the buzzer went off and we both snapped our heads towards the screen.

"The winner of the Cerulean City Contest is..." Jillian trailed and glanced at the screen.

"Michelle!"

My picture and Eevee's picture took up the screen.

"We did it!" I cried, picking up Eevee and hugging her.

Nikki walked over to me and stopped. "Good battle, Michelle. Congrats on winning your first ribbon." she said, smiling.

"Thanks, Nikki. That was a close call." I replied with a small smile.

I had only won by a little bit. I walked onto the stage where Shawn Contesta would give me the Cerulean Ribbon.

"Congratulations on your first win in your very first contest. Here is the Cerulean Ribbon." he said extending the pillow with the ribbon. I picked up the ribbon and looked at it. The ribbon was a blueish green color. I held the ribbon up.

"Alright! I won the Cerulean Ribbon!" I cried happily. The crowd cheered and soon I was back in the dressing room. Nikki was the only other person in there.

"Well Michelle, me and Trevor are off." she said.

"Yeah, I think we're heading off, too." I said, facing her.

"Well, we'll see each other again. Later!" Nikki cried as she ran out of the room.

I changed back into my normal clothes, picked up my bag, and pulled it onto my back. Eevee jumped into my arms and I left the room. I walked out of the contest building to find Adam, Jason, and my mom waiting for me.

"Way to go, Michelle!" Adam cried.

"Good job, Michelle." Jason said.

"Good job, sweetie. I'm so proud of you." my mom said, hugging me.

"Thanks, you guys." I said, smiling. "Well mom, we're gonna go now. Time for us to hit the road and travel to the next city."

My mom nodded her head.

"Bye, Misty. Thank you for letting us stay with you for so long." Adam said.

"Bye, Adam. Tell your mom I said hello." my mom said.

"It was good to see you again, Misty. I'll tell my parents you say hey." Jason said.

"Bye, Jason." my mom said.

"Bye, mom. I love you." I said.

"Bye, sweetie. Love you, too."

She hugged us all and we started walking.

_I'm finally leaving Cerulean City. I'll be able to see Kanto. Thanks for everything, mom. I'll be able to achieve my dream._

**Author's Note: And so, our heroes finally set out on the road once again, with Michelle winning her first ribbon, and the boys with two badges each. We hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

**Be sure to read the next chapter where we will take a look back in Pallet Town to see Dawn, who will be receiving an unexpected call from an old friend from Sinnoh. Any guesses on who it could be?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	12. Dawn's Dilemma, Team Rocket's Next Plan!

**Author's Note: Hey, everyone! Guess what? Today's my birthday! You can give me a present by leaving a review!**

**For this chapter, we will be taking a break from seeing the journey of our three heroes, and take a look back in Pallet Town to see what's happening with Dawn.**

**Dawn's POV**

Adam has been travelling for two months now and Ash has been missing for three months. I wondered where they were and how they were doing. Hopefully, they weren't getting into trouble like Ash and I did on our journey, especially since Adam had told me that Team Rocket was back once again. I missed Adam and Ash. The two most important men in my life had left me alone. I wondered if this was how my mom felt when I was away on my journey. I sat on the couch waiting for the news to come back on.

"_...Well folks, before the break, I told you that we had some important news. Many of you know Pokemon Master Ash Ketchum has been missing for three months now. Many people are losing faith. They think that he's dead and long gone by now. Is he gone forever? Is he just training somewhere? Will he ever return? People around every region are saying, 'No, he's never going to return.' A poll was put up and seventy five percent voted 'Dead: Never to return.' It's such a shame so many people are believing that he is more likely dead than alive."_

I sighed and flipped through channels.

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing on him." I muttered.

I've been checking the news for anything that would show that Ash is somewhere out there or anything that involved him. Nothing has been showing up...well, nothing positive, anyways. It's all been negative. At first, it was only a few saying that he was gone, but now it's almost everyone.

I flipped through channels some more.

"Wait a second!" I cried as I flipped back to a channel. "A press conference?"

The Pokemon League symbol was on the screen. I looked at the channel and realized it was a news channel. The Elite Four were sitting on the stage, waiting to be asked questions.

"_Celia from Kanto Now. What are the plans for the Champion?" Celia asked._

"_Well we have decided that if Ash Ketchum does not return in nine months' time, we'll have no choice but to find a new trainer to replace him." Lance replied._

"_Top Reporter from Happening Now in Kanto. Why the sudden decision? Who knows if he's even dead?" the unknown reporter asked._

"_He's been missing for three months now. The trail has gone cold. The case is probably closed. Ash has vanished without a trace." Karen replied._

"_Watson from Kanto News. Ash did not vanish without a trace. The day Ash vanished, the news reported massive destruction. The Elite Four was informed about the destruction, correct?" Watson asked._

"_Yes, we were informed of the destruction, but no clues could be salvaged." Bruno replied._

"_Kelly here. Were there any signs that it was indeed Ash that was there?" Kelly asked._

"_No information can be given." a voice answered._

"_Wait! So it is true? Nine months, and if Ash is not located, his spot as Champion of each region will be given away to other trainers?" _

"_Yes," the Elite Four replied._

The Pokemon League symbol reappeared and the news went to a commercial.

"Nine months? They're supposed to contact the family before a decision like replacing him is made!" I exclaimed.

I got up from the couch and walked to the video phone. I dialled the Pokemon League and waited.

"Hello?" a voice asked.

"Dawn Ketchum here. Are the Elite Four there?" I asked.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Ketchum. They will not be speaking to anyone right now. I apologize."

"Wait!"

"Goodbye,"

The call ended and I sighed. I walked back to the living room and sat back down.

"He is still out there. I know he is. They should have contacted me. I needed to know about this and now they won't talk to me?" I muttered angrily.

I walked to the kitchen and took out the ingredients to make poffins. I was a little shaken up by the news and the press conference and I needed to take my mind off of things. I only wondered if Adam saw that report. I really hoped he didn't see that, cause I knew that would affect him and the last thing he needed was to become worried about Ash while on his journey.

After making a whole bunch of poffins for all of the Pokemon, they were eating happily while I was a mess from cooking.

I walked to the bathroom so I could get cleaned. After showering and getting in some lounging clothes, I returned to the living room and sat on the couch again.

Pachirisu and Buneary decided to come and sit with me. I flipped on the television to see if there was anything on. To my surprise, there was a contest showing. In fact, it was the most recent contest in Kanto. The Cerulean City Contest that Michelle had won, being re-run.

"I need to congratulate her whenever I talk to Adam again." I said to myself.

I watched the contest once again. I wouldn't mind being in a contest again, but it wouldn't be the same. Ash was always there, cheering me on. I guess he was a lucky charm sometimes. Of course, I was always there for him, too.

I sighed sadly. It hurt me to know that so many people were losing hope that Ash could still be alive. It also saddened me since he only had nine months to show up again or he'd lose the title. After so many years of training, he can't just let all of his hard work be for nothing.

"Bun..." Buneary trailed.

"I'm fine, Buneary. No need to worry." I said, patting her head.

I glanced at the television again and frowned.

"_Is Ash Ketchum going to remain the Champion or will it be given to another?" _

"Argh! Leave it alone!" I screamed. I pressed the off button and I stared at the black screen. I got up from the couch and walked to the window and looked out. I remembered the day that Ash went missing, while looking out of the window.

Suddenly, the phone rang. I glanced at the clock to find that it was around three. I walked towards the video phone.

"Who would be calling me?" I asked myself.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Hey, Dee Dee."

I was shocked. Kenny was calling me. I sat down in front of the screen.

"Hi, Kenny. The name's still Dawn, not Dee Dee." I replied, slightly annoyed.

"I know, but it's been a while since we've talked. Had to bring up a childhood memory."

Okay, something was up. Kenny could have easily contacted me over the years. Why the sudden phone call?

"Why'd you call?" I asked.

"Can't a guy call a friend?" he asked.

"Yeah, but you've had all these years to call me."

"...Fine. There's a reason I called you."

"Which is?"

"Do you remember that day when I challenged Ash to a rematch battle again?"

How could I forget that day? That day Kenny had told me that he had feelings for me and that he loved me.

"I remember..."

"Well, Dawn...my feelings for you haven't changed or gone away. Will you give me another chance?" Kenny asked with pleading eyes.

I was shocked.

"Kenny, I'm married to Ash! Remember? I'm Dawn Ketchum now!" I cried.

"Dawn, Ash is dead. And I want to be with you. You aren't going to be able to take care of your kid by yourself! Do you really want Adam to grow up without a father just like Ash did? Adam deserves better than that, and so do you!"

My eye twitched from annoyance and anger.

"Ash turned out perfectly fine without his father! I can take care of myself, Kenny. I'm a grown woman now, not the same little girl you knew in preschool. I can handle raising Adam just fine! Ash is alive, so don't you dare say that he's dead!"

"Dawn, he's been missing for three months! Yeah, three months. He's gone, Dawn. Forever. Please give me another chance. I still have the same feelings for you, Dawn...I love you."

"Kenny! I don't care what you say or what anyone else says! Ash is alive and I know it! I can feel it in my heart. And I don't love you that way! Why can't you understand?"

"Dawn, he's gone!"

"He's not gone, Kenny! Don't you dare tell me that he is! I won't see you the way you see me, I'm sorry, but I can't! My heart belongs to Ash and Ash alone! I'll never give up hope until I see him with my own eyes."

"...Fine. Dawn, sorry to bother you. Just remember this, I'll always love you." Kenny said, and the call ended.

"...And I'll only ever like you as a brother, Kenny. Nothing more." I said.

_Ash, wherever you are, just remember that I'll always love you, no matter what._ I thought, as I looked at my wedding ring on my finger.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

An unknown man shrouded in darkness sat in his office, speaking to the three henchmen standing in front of him.

"In the mountain area south of Cerulean City is a hidden area where wild Pokemon gather to rest when injured. There is a cabin there, kind of like a Pokemon Center. Attacking and stealing from a real Pokemon Center is too risky but this one is hidden away in the mountains and nobody ever goes up there.

"Therefore, you will be going there to capture these Pokemon. Since all of the Pokemon there are slightly weakened, catching them will be easier. And because they are wild Pokemon, when they are brought here, they will be captured in Pokeballs and added to our Pokemon arsenal. Be warned that there are many hidden traps leading to this area to keep out intruders. Therefore, you will be airlifted directly into the area, bypassing most of these traps. But stay on your guard for any other traps that we may not know about. There is only a single woman who lives in the cabin and treats the injured Pokemon. She shouldn't be a problem. We can't allow there to be any witnesses, so kill her and dispose of the body.

"Oh, and one more thing. In case you weren't already informed with the other grunts, if you come across the pair of boys who foiled our plans at Mt. Moon, capture them and bring them to me alive. But don't be afraid to rough them up a bit. We don't have much info about them, but we do know that one has very spiky brown hair, and the other one resembles Ash Ketchum to a tee, complete with a Pikachu on his shoulder. If you bring them to me alive, you will be rewarded very greatly...and I don't mean with just money.

"Any questions? No? Good. You'll leave tomorrow. You are dismissed." he finished, and the three henchmen left.

A man in his mid to late 30's with sharp, narrow red eyes and dark blue hair walked into the room as the henchmen left. He was wearing a long black coat over a red jumpsuit. He walked right up to the mysterious man and said, "Father, I've just received news that most people around the world are beginning to doubt the possibility that Ash Ketchum is still alive."

"Yes, I've already heard, Darien." the mysterious man replied. "That should make things easier for us, since it means that nobody will be out there looking for him."

"Oh, but I know somebody that will always be believing that he's alive." the man now known as Darien replied.

"Yes, that wife of his, living back in Pallet Town. We have nothing to worry about from her."

"Without her husband, she's useless! Oh, you have got a lot to learn about power and strength, SISTER! Hahaha!"

**Author's Note: Dun Dun DUUUUNNNN! Plot twist!**

**Okay, before you all freak out, we will tell you that there is a perfectly logical reason why the Elite Four announced that they will replace Ash, and why they did not contact Dawn, and why they refused to speak to her when she called them. But that reason will be revealed later on in the story.**

**So for right now, most people are believing that Ash is dead and gone forever, but Dawn refuses to give up hope for him. Kenny believes that since Ash is dead, Dawn will give him another chance in her life. Fat chance!**

**Meanwhile, another sinister plan is being hatched by Team Rocket. Can you guess where they'll strike next? If you've watched the show, you probably already know. If you have a guess, leave a comment!**

**We hope you've enjoyed this shorter chapter as we take a break from Adam and the others. In the next chapter, we'll be back with them again as they continue their journey. What will they face? Who will they meet? What Pokemon will they capture?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	13. Team Rocket Strikes Again

We were walking down the dirt road towards Vermillion City.

"Adam, I think you've got your places mixed up." Jason said suddenly.

"Yeah, this is the long way to Vermillion City and it'll completely bypass Saffron City." Michelle added.

"I know. But just trust me, guys. I know what I'm doing. My dad has an old friend who lives around these parts. I wanted to drop by and say hi." I replied.

"Okay, then. No problem with me." Jason replied.

"Fine by me." Michelle added.

We walked in silence for a while.

"So...do you have any brothers or sisters?" Michelle asked, breaking the silence.

"No, neither of us do. But Jason and I grew up together, as close as brothers." I replied. "I sometimes think it's strange, since our dads weren't always on good terms with each other when they were younger, yet Jason and I hit it off right when we first met."

"Ain't that the truth! I think what made us become friends so fast was because we shared an interest. Adam and I were united by a common goal: to become Pokemon trainers." Jason added. "Adam's parents are like a second family to me. Same thing with Adam and my parents."

"That explains why you two seem really tight. I wish that I had a sister, but not like my mom's. That would be torture."

Jason and I laughed. We had heard the stories from our dads about Misty's three older sisters. Poor Misty was the tomboy and had girly-girl sisters. She was the youngest of the four and not considered as beautiful as the others.

"I know this might be a little weird, but how did your parents meet?" Michelle asked.

For a moment, I wondered why she wanted to know these things. I figured that she wanted to get to know us better, but was there more to it than that? Did she want to think about how Misty and her dad got together or have an idea of how her dad was doing?

"Well, my dad and mom met in Sinnoh. Team Rocket had captured Pikachu but they were attacked and that caused Pikachu to fall into a forest." I explained. My parents told this story to me many times when I was younger. I loved that their first meeting was so out of the blue, not to mention that it was Team Rocket's doing that brought them together in the first place. At least Team Rocket did SOMETHING good!

"Anyways, my mom and Piplup had already tried to capture two Pokemon, but failed each time. The third Pokemon they came across was my dad's Pikachu. My mom tried to capture Pikachu, but of course, it didn't work. Team Rocket then found her and Pikachu and their Pokemon surrounded Pikachu. My mom and Piplup helped fend them off until Pikachu was captured and being held by one of Team Rocket's machines. Piplup was exhausted and couldn't fight anymore, then they began attacking my mom, now helpless to defend herself.

"My dad, hearing the commotion, arrived just in time, climbed onto the machine and tried and tried to free Pikachu. My mom told me that day she was amazed by the bond between my dad and Pikachu, risking his own life to help his Pokemon. She knew there was something different about him, something special. She also told me she was scared for my dad since he was putting himself in danger. After jumping around, he caused the machine to attack itself and blow up. One blastoff later, my dad and Pikachu were buried under the rubble.

"My dad and Pikachu finally got out and were reunited. My dad was pretty beat up after that, but he had rescued Pikachu and saved my mom's life...and it wouldn't be the last time he'd save her, either! After some phone calls and my dad getting cleaned up, my mom asked to travel across Sinnoh with him and Brock." I said, finishing.

"That's one crazy story of how your parents met." Michelle said.

"Yeah? Well, it's no crazier than the way YOUR mom met him! She caught him with her fishing rod while fishing for Pokemon and caught him instead!" Jason said.

"True," Michelle said, laughing.

"So how did your parents meet?" Michelle now asked Jason.

"Well, my mom, dad, and Adam's dad all grew up together, all living in Pallet Town. So my parents have known each other for practically all their lives." Jason answered.

"What exactly does your mom look like, Jason?"

"She had long dark brown hair, blue eyes, and her skin's a bit more pale than my dad's skin, and mine." Jason said.

"Oh, okay. But you look more like your dad, right?"

"Yeah, exactly like him. Except the darker hair color, which I got from my mom."

"Even his personality is like his dad's." I joked.

"Ha ha. Very funny, Adam." he muttered sarcastically.

"So, is there anything about your family, Michelle?" Jason asked.

"No, just the same story that my mom told me. They divorced when I was a baby. Sometimes I feel like my dad walked out on my mom. There aren't any pictures of him. Nothing that shows he was even in her life. It's like he was erased from her memory. There aren't any pictures of him with me as a baby, either." Michelle replied.

"...Sorry, Michelle."

"It's fine. I don't really mind talking about it. Still, I'd like to know who he was and why he and my mom broke up. I'm just curious and it's a question about my life that's never been answered."

Michelle and I seemed to be very much alike. I was looking for my father, and deep down, I knew that Michelle wanted to find her father somehow, too.

* * *

><p>"Alright, be careful." I warned.<p>

"Be careful? Be careful for what?" Michelle asked.

"Yeah, it's just an empty forest." Jason said.

"There are traps set up to keep intruders away. My dad told me about it. He was caught in a net with Misty when he came here for the first time." I said, walking slowly through the forest. "So watch your step. Luckily, my dad told me what to expect from the time he was here, so stick with me or you might get caught."

I then heard a scream from behind me. I turned and saw Jason hanging upside-down from a rope tied around his foot and the other end of the rope was tied to a tree branch. "...Like that." I finished.

"This isn't as fun as it looks, guys." said Jason, frowning. "Get me down!" Michelle climbed the tree and untied the rope around the branch, letting Jason free-fall and hit the ground. "OW! What was that for?"

"Well, you just told me to get you down. You never said that I had to let you down slowly! Hahahaha!" Michelle said, laughing.

Jason just growled at her and pulled the remains of the rope off of his leg.

After walking for a while and not hitting anymore traps, I started hearing Pokemon cries.

"We're almost there!" I cheered.

"Almost where?" Michelle asked.

"Here," I said, stepping out of the forest. Jason and Michelle followed me out and looked around.

A cabin was right in the middle of an open area. A stream was on one side of the cabin, leading to a pond in front of it. Many Pokemon roamed around the area and there was a woman who looked to be around forty, kneeling next to a Oddish. She stood up and looked around and her eyes landed on us.

"Well...you look like a boy I met many years ago." she said to me as she walked over to us. "I'm Melanie." Melanie had blue hair that was short and she was slightly tanned. Her blue hair was pushed back by an orange headband. She wore a green short sleeve shirt, jeans, and sneakers.

"I'm Adam Ketchum. The boy you're probably referring to is my dad; Ash Ketchum. This is also his Pikachu." I greeted.

"I'm Jason Oak." Jason said.

"Michelle Waterflower, and this is Eevee." Michelle said.

"Eevee!" Eevee cried happily.

I tossed out Bulbasaur's Pokeball.

"Wow, you even have a Bulbasaur like your dad!" she said, amazed. "His Bulbasaur used to live here, protecting the Pokemon that live here from harm."

"Yeah, my dad told me that this was the place where he caught his Bulbasaur."

"Well Adam, how is that Bulbasaur that your dad caught?"

"Fully evolved into a Venusaur. I've seen him in battle before, and he's a real powerhouse!"

"That's wonderful! So what brings you all the way out here? Almost nobody knows about this place."

"I just wanted to see the place where my dad caught his Bulbasaur, and to show my Bulbasaur, too."

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Three figures landed on the ground.

"Sir, we've landed and we're about to start." a female's voice said.

"Understood."

"Alright, boys. We have a mission to get done." she said.

She wore a black Team Rocket uniform, meaning she was a higher-ranking grunt. She had blonde hair that fell across her left eye and she looked like she was in her late twenties.

The other two figures were guys who wore white Team Rocket uniforms, meaning they were lower-ranking grunts. One had orange hair and he looked in his early twenties and the other had brown hair who looked in his late twenties.

The three moved quickly through the forest, avoiding every trap. Soon they stopped and looked through the trees.

"Look, there are the boys the boss told us to capture! But...I thought he said that there were only two? Who's the girl with the Eevee?" the girl asked.

"There were only the two boys the last time when they bumped into the grunts at Mt. Moon." the brunette answered.

"Well, let's just capture the girl, too. Just to be on the safe side." the orange-haired replied. "I'm also taking a picture of them for future reference so all of Team Rocket knows what they look like and what to look for."

"Good thinking. But remember, the boss said that the blue-haired woman has to die!"

The three figures emerged from the trees and tossed out three Pokeballs crying, "Go!"

"Ekans!"

"Seviper!"

"Raticate!"

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

I turned around after hearing the sound of the voices and Pokemon. I quickly noticed that there were red R's on their shirts. Team Rocket!

"Bulbasaur, let's show 'em!" I cried. Bulbasaur ran forward and waited.

"Charmander, go!" Jason cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Char!" Charmander cried.

"Poliwag!" Michelle cried, tossing her Pokeball.

I quickly remembered what Misty had told me and the last time we encountered Team Rocket. "_Ash's disappearance and their reappearance at around the same time can't be a coincidence." _I also remembered that Jason and I couldn't get any answers out of Team Rocket when we met them at Mt. Moon. I wasn't going to miss my chance here!

"Don't battle yet." I said quietly to Jason and Michelle. They just nodded and waited, looking slightly confused.

"What do you know about my dad, Ash Ketchum?" I asked them.

"He's dead!" they yelled.

_He's not dead. He can't be...is he? NO! He can't be dead! They're just trying to throw me off!_

"You're lying!" I yelled.

"Haven't you seen the news lately? It's not just us. All of the world is confirming it!" they yelled.

"The news...?"

"Attack!" the grunts cried quickly.

"Bulbasaur, time to protect the village! Use Razor Leaf!" I cried. Bulbasaur quickly jumped and used Razor Leaf.

"Charmander, use Flamethrower!" Jason cried.

"Poliwag, use Water Gun!" Michelle cried.

The attacks hit the Team Rocket Pokemon as they cancelled out their attacks.

"Don't let these brats win!" the girl cried.

"Poison Sting!"

"Poison Sting!"

"Bite!"

"Bulbasaur, use Solar Beam!" I cried.

"Charmander, use Flamethrower once more!" Jason cried.

"Poliwag, use Bubble Beam!" Michelle cried.

The battle raged on for ten long minutes until Bulbasaur ended it with one final well-placed Solar Beam! The attacks hit Team Rocket's Pokemon and they were returned. The three grunts ran off.

"Thank you. Adam, you and your Bulbasaur are just like your dad and his Bulbasaur. You two remind me of how he and his Bulbasaur protected me and the Pokemon here from Team Rocket so many years ago. Thank you all for helping." Melanie said.

"You're welcome," we replied.

A small silence passed.

"Well Melanie, it was nice meeting you, but we have to go now. We're just passing through and wanted to say hi." I said.

"Nice to meet you, too. Farewell!" she said.

"Bye!" we chorused, waving over our shoulders. We continued our way to Vermillion City and the walk was quiet.

"Do you think what those grunts said was true?" I asked quietly and stopped walking.

Jason insistently stopped walking and looked at me.

"You're kidding, right? Adam, don't believe anything those idiots say." he said.

"Yeah, Jason's right. Don't believe them. They're just trying to discourage you" Michelle said.

I knew they were right, but part of me was starting to believe my dad was dead. After all, they had said that other people around the world were saying he was dead, too. And if that was true, then maybe they were right about dad.

"I'm going to call my mom as soon as we get to a phone. Is that okay?" I asked.

"Yeah,"

If anyone knew what was on the news, it would be my mom. Ever since he went missing she stayed watching the news for any sign of him, so she would be up-to-date on all the details. She could confirm whether or not it was true.

_How can people be believing he's dead? My dad isn't dead, he's alive and he's out there...somewhere. Dad, I will find you._

**Author's Note: So the kids have found out some more about each other and their families. Adam and Michelle both seem to want to find their missing fathers. Bulbasaur and Adam have defended the hidden village just like Ash had done before them, so many years earlier. Another run-in with Team Rocket, but they were able to drive them off and learn some information about Ash.**

**Is what Team Rocket said true? Is Ash really dead? Or is this just a ploy to distract the kids?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	14. Shocking Discoveries, Shocking Battles!

I looked up and saw the outlines of Vermilion City. "There it is!" I cried, pointing to the outlines of the city. We had been travelling for two whole weeks since leaving Cerulean City, but here we were!

Jason looked up and nodded his head. Michelle smiled, she really wanted to finally eat a decent meal and not just berries, bread, and canned food that you cook over a fire.

Jason and I had really grown closer as friends with Michelle since we left Cerulean City. Neither Jason nor I had ever thought that we would be travelling with a third person on our journey, and now, we couldn't imagine ourselves without her. Jason and I were already as close as brothers, and Michelle was now like the sister we never had. Is that what happens when you're an only child? Do your friends become like brothers and sisters? Or maybe it's because our parents were already good friends, so we already sort of had a connection? Whatever it was, I was glad that I had the two of them with me. While I missed my mom and dad, Jason and Michelle were my family now.

We took off running and soon we were entering the city. I smelled the salty air from the nearby ocean. Vermillion City was Kanto's main ship port, with boats that carried people to Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh. Unova could only be reached by plane. I made a mental note to go down to the docks to see all these ships later.

We walked to the Pokemon Center with Pikachu and Eevee walking beside us. Once entering, I spotted Trevor, my rival.

"Well, look who it is." Jason muttered.

We walked towards the desk and Trevor glanced up. "What are you three doing here? Here to challenge the gym?" he asked with a bored expression on his face.

"Yes," Jason and I said.

"Don't even bother with it. I just came from the gym. I was beaten badly by Lt. Surge and his Raichu. I mean, if my Pokemon can't beat him, then there's no way you two could beat him. After my Pokemon is healed, I'm going to do some training for the next battle. You guys should just go to a different gym. Or better yet, just give up and go home!" he said, glancing towards the rooms.

Jason remained silent and I could tell that he was getting mad.

"Why do you think that we can't beat Lt. Surge? Just because you can't win doesn't mean that we can't!" I said.

Trevor was about to reply, but Nikki ran up. She came from the direction of the rooms so she must have been in there and saw Trevor messing with us. "He's right, though. You'll both need lots of luck. Lt. Surge's Raichu used to be the strongest Electric Pokemon in all of Kanto. But Raichu lost that title to Ash Ketchum's Pikachu and is now the second strongest. Pikachu was the only other Electric Pokemon to ever overpower Raichu." Nikki explained.

I knew this already, but it made me proud to know my dad was known for what he's accomplished.

"...But Raichu has the title as the strongest Electric Pokemon back once again, since Master Ketchum is dead, after all." Trevor added.

I flinched at what Trevor had just said and yelled, "HE'S NOT DEAD!" Pikachu yelled at him, too. I wanted to lunge at Trevor, but Nurse Joy wouldn't tolerate violence and my parents taught me never to fight unless threatened. Like my dad, I had a bit of a temper.

"Adam, it's okay. Take a breath." Michelle said, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Ignore him. Ignore everyone that's saying it." Jason added.

"I'm not really sure if he's dead. I don't think he is, but then again...he has been gone for a while. But I won't stop believing that Master Ketchum lives." Nikki said softly.

"Trevor, your Pokemon is healed." Nurse Joy said.

Trevor walked off and retrieved his Pokeball and walked back over. "Nikki, let's go." he said.

"Okay, just hold up." Nikki said curtly. "Michelle, I hope to see you in the Vermilion City contest. It's in a few days, hope you enter."

"Nicole, hurry up." Trevor said again, more annoyed this time.

Nikki's eyes lowered to slits. "Don't call me _Nicole._"

I was beginning to think that he deliberately called her by her real name so he could get under her skin.

She looked back at us. "Good luck in the gym battle. Michelle, please enter. And Adam, Jason, sorry about Trevor." she said, walking off.

As they walked out, he doors opened and a trainer came running past the two of them into the building.

"Nurse Joy!" he cried.

"Not again." Nurse Joy muttered, looking up.

I spotted a beat up Farfetch'd that was charred and covered in burns. Chansey came from behind the desk and the trainer placed Farfetch'd on the stretcher and it was rushed to the emergency room.

"Nurse Joy, is that what happens to the Pokemon who battle against Lt. Surge's Raichu?" Michelle asked.

"Sadly, yes." she replied, scribbling something on a clipboard.

I quickly glanced at the phones. "I'm calling my mom. I need to find out if what they're saying about my dad is true." I said, walking to the phones. I knew that mom would be up-to-date on all the details about dad.

Michelle and Jason followed me and we gathered in front of one phone. I dialed my mom and waited for her to pick up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, mom." Jason and I said.

"Hi, Mrs. Ketchum." Michelle said.

"Hey, kids. Michelle, please just call me Dawn. Oh, and congratulations on winning your first contest." my mom said as she popped up.

"Thank you," Michelle said.

"So where are you guys at now?" my mom asked.

"Vermilion City," Jason said.

"Have you two challenged the gym yet?"

"Not yet, but we plan on it." I said, distracted slightly.

"Adam? Sweetie, what's wrong?" my mom asked with worry appearing on her face.

"Mom, we ran into Team Rocket again. These grunts...when I asked them where dad was at...they told me that he was dead. I didn't believe it at first, but today, our rival said that he was dead, too. Are people really believing dad's dead?" I asked.

A silence came over and I looked at my mom. She had a sad look on her face. "Have you watched the news recently?" she asked.

"We haven't seen the news since they first announced that it was time to sign up for contests." Jason answered.

"Well..." my mom trailed.

"Mom, what is it?" I asked. I needed to know what was going on and my mom knew. Any information on dad could help me find him.

"Well, I was watching the news. There was a poll and seventy five percent voted, 'Dead: Never to return.'" my mom said softly.

"So it's true? People really are believing he's dead?" I asked shocked.

"Yes..."

"But there's more, isn't there?"

"Yes,"

I frowned and looked at the ground sadly. "What is it?"

"A press conference was shown on the news. The league has decided that if your dad doesn't come back in nine months, the position and title of 'Pokemon Master' will be given to another person." my mom explained.

I opened my mouth to say something, but my mom put up her hand.

"They decided this because he's been missing for three months. If he doesn't return in nine months, it'll be a full year since he went missing. They said the trail has gone cold and the case is probably closed."

A silence hung in the air. I couldn't think of anything to say. I saw Jason frowning and Michelle was looking sad.

"...So he has nine months to return or all of his hard work will have been for nothing?" I asked.

"Yes,"

"You don't think he's really dead, do you?" I asked softly.

"Adam, sweetie, your dad is out there. I don't know where, but I can feel it, my heart tells me he's alive. You don't think he's dead, do you?" she asked.

"No, I know he's not dead." I replied. _And I'll never stop until I find him._

I wished that my mom wasn't on the phone and was with me right now so I could be comforted by her. With so many people saying my dad was dead, it was hurting me and I felt like I would lose it one day.

"Thanks for telling us, mom." I said.

"No problem, just ignore what the people are saying. Don't let it discourage you or get you down, and don't let it stop you from achieving your dream and reaching your goal. Keep going, because that's what your dad would want you to do. Do it for him...and me."

"I will, mom. I love you,"

"Love you, too."

"Bye, mom." Jason and I said.

"Bye, Dawn." Michelle said.

"Bye, good luck in your gym battles."

The call ended and I stood staring at the black screen. "So what Team Rocket said was true." I said quietly. "They didn't lie. It's not just them, but almost everyone is saying it." But it didn't make sense. How could everyone just give up on him so easily? He was the most powerful trainer in the world.

I closed my eyes, feeling sad and confused. I felt arms wrap around me and I opened my eyes. Michelle was hugging me, and Jason placed his hand on my shoulder. I hugged back, finding some comfort in my two friends. I felt very lucky to have them right now, lucky to have people who I could turn to whenever I felt down.

"Don't give up." Michelle said as we separated. "Jason and I are always here for you."

"That's right." Jason agreed. "And we won't stop looking until we know for sure what happened to your dad."

"Thank you so much, guys. You don't know how much this means to me." I said, almost ready to cry.

"Well, that's what best friends do. They look out for each other." Jason said, smiling. "Now how about you go and challenge Lt. Surge? A Pokemon battle should be able to cheer you up!"

"You're right!" I said, getting my spirit back. "I'm gonna prove Trevor wrong and do what he couldn't do: win the badge! Ready, Pikachu?" I asked, looking at him.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried.

I remember my dad telling me the story of this gym battle. Lt. Surge was pretty rude, he called my dad a baby. Lt. Surge also evolved his Pikachu into a Raichu way too early and it didn't have the speed that Pikachu had, so it was slower. Pikachu didn't win the first time, but he and my dad won the rematch! He showed me the technique one day and it was something different.

I also remember my dad telling me that Pikachu was given the chance to evolve with a Thunderstone so he could be powerful enough to win. But Pikachu refused and was determined to beat Raichu and prove that a Pikachu could beat a Raichu without having to evolve.

We walked down the streets and soon we were in front of the gym. It looked like a warehouse with lightning bolts painted on it. I walked towards the automatic doors and they opened.

A low, light ring and bleachers. Jason and Michelle went to sit on the bleachers and I waited.

"You here to challenge the gym?" a voice asked.

"Yeah," I replied.

"Hey, boss! Another victim for the emergency room!" the voice called out.

Lt. Surge walked over towards me with his Raichu beside him. "Hmm...you look like a kid that I battled once before. He was a baby, but proved me wrong after a rematch." he muttered.

Lt. Surge wore a cargo green vest, camouflage shorts, black combat boots, and sunglasses. His once blonde hair was now grey and he looked to be in his sixties. But he was still very physically fit and in great shape for age, still just as muscular as he was when my dad had first met him. Age hadn't slowed him down a bit!

"That boy happens to be my dad; Ash Ketchum." I said.

"No kidding? He's challenged me to a few rematches over the years to keep his Pikachu in shape...still haven't been able to win. It's interesting to see that you've got a Pikachu, too."

He walked towards his side of the field and I took my side. The referee ran out and took his place.

"The battle between Gym Leader, Lt. Surge, and the challenger, Adam Ketchum will begin. This is a one on one battle with no time limit. When the Pokemon on one side is unable to battle, the match is over. Begin!"

"Ready, Raichu?" Surge asked.

"Rai! Rai!" Raichu cried.

I took out my Pokedex and pointed it at Raichu. "Raichu. A mouse pokemon of the Electric type. Raichu can shock with more than 100,000 volts of electricity, enough power to knock out a Dragonite!"

"Pikachu, let's show 'em!" I cried as Pikachu jumped off my shoulder.

"Pika! Pikachu!"

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!" I shouted, trying to use speed to my advantage, just like dad had done. Pikachu darted towards Raichu, his body was a blur.

"Raichu, Take Down!" Raichu ran towards Pikachu. I watched closely and smirked.

I knew that Raichu would be able to hit Pikachu in time if he veered off from his predicted path. "Curve, Pikachu!" I cried. Pikachu dug his feet into the ground, using the momentum to curve around Raichu and out of harm's way, so Raichu's attack missed and Pikachu then quickly spun and tackled Raichu from behind.

"Rai!" Raichu cried out.

"Thunderbolt, Raichu!"

"Dodge it!" I cried as the Thunderbolt headed towards Pikachu. I knew that Raichu had massive electric power and its attacks could KO a Pokemon in one shot. But I also knew that Pikachu could take a lot of hits, after all the training he and dad had done.

Pikachu dodged the attack, but Lt. Surge quickly ordered Mega Kick and I had no time to tell Pikachu to dodge. "Pi!" Pikachu cried, flying towards the edge of the field. Pikachu got up and shook himself.

"Iron Tail!" Pikachu ran towards Raichu as his tail glowed with steel. "Do it!"

"Mega Punch!"

The two moves collided and dust stirred up. Both Pokemon were weakened from the blows.

"Quick Attack!"

"Body Slam!"

Pikachu and Raichu both hit each other and flew back.

"Thunderbolt, Pikachu!"

"Raichu, take the attack. You can handle it."

I quickly wondered if Lt. Surge had forgotten that my dad was the Champion and if he knew that this was his Pikachu, not mine. Pikachu had trained for a long time to become powerful enough to be able to damage another Electric Pokemon and to be able to take Electric attacks better.

The Thunderbolt hit Raichu and Raichu cried out in pain. "But How?!" Lt. Surge cried in surprise.

"Let's finish this, Pikachu! Iron Tail!" I cried. Pikachu ran towards Raichu.

"PIKA...CHU!" Pikachu cried, hitting Raichu in the face and Raichu went stumbling back.

Pikachu was breathing heavily and Raichu was too. Both Pokemon were fighting a really tough fight. After a few seconds of panting, Raichu fell to the ground, fainted.

"Raichu is unable to battle. The winner is the challenger, Adam Ketchum!" the referee cried.

"Way to go, Pikachu! You've still got it in you!" I cried.

Pikachu jumped onto my shoulder joyously.

"Well, that was a good battle. You definetely have your father's battling skills. Here is the Thunder Badge." Lt. Surge said, handing me the badge.

"Badge number three!" I cried.

Jason and Michelle walked down and waited for me by the door.

"Good luck in your future gym battles." Lt. Surge said. "And just for the record, I think that your old man still alive and kickin'! Any trainer that can beat my Raichu, especially with another Electric Pokemon - and that's no small feat - could never be put down that easily!"

"Thanks, Surge!" It felt good to know that I wasn't the only person out there who still had some hope for my dad.

"Way to go, Adam." Michelle said as we walked out.

"You won your third badge." Jason said.

"Thanks, guys."

We returned to the Pokemon Center so I could heal Pikachu. We entered the center, and I spotted Trevor and Nikki. I smirked to myself and approached the front desk.

"Hello, how may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Could you heal my Pikachu?" I asked.

I heard a laugh which came from Trevor if I'm not mistaken.

"Certainly,"

Pikachu jumped down.

"Thank you,"

I removed my newest badge from my case and approached Trevor and Nikki. It was time for some payback for calling me pathetic. "Look," I said once I was near them.

Trevor turned around and saw the badge in my hand. The proof was right in front of him. "But...how could you win against Lt. Surge? How did a pathetic trainer like you win, when I couldn't? That's not possible." he said, shocked.

"See? It IS possible for a trainer like me to win. You aren't any stronger than me, Trevor. We're evenly matched." I said and walked off.

Jason and Michelle were chatting when I walked up to them.

"So when are you challenging Lt. Surge?" I asked Jason.

Before Jason could reply, Nurse Joy called me. I walked to the front desk and Pikachu hopped onto my shoulder.

"Thank you," I said walking back over.

"Tomorrow or the next day. I'm not sure yet." Jason answered.

We were going to be in Vermilion City for a while since Jason still had his gym battle and Michelle had a contest, if she was even entering this one.

**Author's Note: So Adam and the gang reach Vermillion City, but Adam gets some bad news from his mom. But after some comforting words from his friends, Adam regains his spirit and does what his rival couldn't do: Win his gym badge! Adam really showed Trevor up, huh?**

**In the next chapter, a new Pokemon will be appearing as Jason gets ready for his gym battle. Who is this Pokemon? How will he fare? And will Michelle be participating in the Vermillion City Pokemon contest?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	15. Slash and Burn

**Jason's POV**

Adam and I were having another battle of the Charmanders.

"Charmander, Flamethrower!" Adam cried.

"Dodge it and use Metal Claw!" I cried.

Charmander successfully dodged the flames and ran towards Adam's Charmander, ready with his Metal Claw.

"Smokescreen!" Adam called out. My Charmander stopped as the smoke flew towards his eyes. "And now Metal Claw!" Adam's Charmander emerged from the smoke and struck my Charmander.

"Charmander, use Metal Claw once more!"

"Dodge!" I yelled.

Too late. Once again, my Charmander was hit by the attack. It looked like this battle would go to Adam.

But then, as Charmander stood up, he started to glow with a white light. The shape of his body changed and when the light was gone, Charmander no longer stood there. Charmander had evolved into Charmeleon!

"Way to go! You evolved!" I cried. Charmeleon glanced at me and nodded.

I removed my Pokedex and looked at the moves while the Pokedex told me about Charmeleon. "Charmeleon, the Lizard Pokémon. In battle, it whips its fiery tail around like a club and slashes with its razor-sharp claws."

With my newly evolved Fire Pokemon, I knew I could win! "Alright Charmeleon, use Flamethrower!"

"Charrrr!" Charmeleon cried, launching the attack.

"Dodge it!" Adam yelled, but Charmander didn't dodge in time.

"Metal Claw!" I cried. Charmeleon charged towards Charmander and attacked.

"Let's finish this with Flamethrower!" I cried.

But Charmeleon didn't use Flamethrower. Instead, his mouth held the flames inside. Fire Fang!

"Do it!" I cried.

"Char!" Charmander cried as Charmeleon's red-hot jaws clamped down on him.

Adam watched as Charmander fell to the ground, fainted. "You did good. Take a rest." he said, returning his Pokemon. He walked over to where I was standing with Charmeleon. Michelle ran over, too.

"Congrats on evolving Charmander...uh, Charmeleon." Michelle said.

"Well, now you get to challenge the gym with a newly evolved Pokemon." Adam said.

"Yeah. You ready, Charmeleon?" I asked.

"Char. Charmeleon."

I returned Charmeleon and walked to the Pokemon Center to heal Charmeleon.

"How may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked as I stopped at the desk.

"Can you heal my Charmeleon?" I asked.

"Certainly,"

I handed her the Pokeball and she walked over to the machine. I waited for a few minutes and talked to Adam.

"Looks like my Fire Pokemon's the stronger one now." I said, referring to Charmeleon.

"You just wait," Adam replied, "Since we both got our Charmanders on the same day back in Pallet Town, that means mine should be close to evolving, too."

"Here you go. Your Charmeleon is healed and ready to go." Nurse Joy said, handing me my Pokeball.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." I said, hooking the Pokeball to my belt.

She nodded and I walked back outside where Michelle was waiting for us.

"Ready?" Michelle asked me.

I nodded my head. We headed towards the gym and entered. Adam and Michelle went to sit on the bleachers.

"Here to challenge the gym?" a voice asked.

"You bet," I replied.

"Hey, boss! You got another victim for the emergency room!" the voice called.

I guessed that more people had challenged Lt. Surge and didn't have the luck that Adam had in his battle. Would I have that luck he had? After all, Raichu was the second strongest Electric Pokemon in Kanto, after Ash's Pikachu.

Lt. Surge walked up and glanced at me. "This will be easy." he said.

We took our sides on the field. The referee asked for my name and I gave it.

"The battle between Gym Leader, Lt. Surge, and the challenger, Jason Oak, will begin. This is a one on one battle with no time limit. When the Pokemon on one side is unable to battle, the match is over. Begin!"

"Ready, Raichu?" Surge asked.

"Rai! Raichu!" Raichu cried.

I had recorded Raichu yesterday during Adam's battle. No harm in doing a little research in Pokemon you would be going against.

"Charmeleon, go!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Char!" Charmeleon cried, landing on the ground.

"Use Smokescreen!" I cried. I had my strategy planned out and hopefully it would work.

"Stand your ground, Raichu. Be prepared for anything." Surge said.

"Now, Charmeleon! Metal Claw!" I cried. Charmeleon ran out from the smoke and charged at Raichu.

"Thun-" Surge started, but Raichu got hit.

"Mega Punch!" he said instead.

"Flamethrower, quick!"

Raichu hit Charmeleon. But at the same time, the Flamethrower launched but it went upwards towards the roof, since the Mega Punch had knocked Charmeleon's head away from Raichu. I watched as the flame stopped; having gone too far up into the air and went out.

"Flamethrower!" Charmeleon recovered from the Mega Punch and launched the attack towards Raichu.

"Counter it with Thunderbolt!"

The two moves collided and created dust. Raichu and Charmeleon both had taken some damage, but neither one was hurt very much. I noticed that Charmeleon was battling with more power and ferocity compared to when he was a Charmander. It seemed that the stronger the opponent, the harder Charmeleon fought!

"Fire Fang!" Charmeleon burst through the dust and bit Raichu. When Charmeleon jumped back, Surge didn't command another attack. I didn't command an attack, either.

"Rai!" Raichu cried when a flame appeared out of nowhere and covered its body. Then I realized that Raichu was burned!

"Raichu, use Body Slam!" Raichu ran towards Charmeleon. I had to think of something. Fast!

"Keep away from Raichu, but get your Metal Claw ready to strike!" Charmeleon ran from Raichu as the Metal Claw charged up. Raichu jumped towards Charmeleon as he skidded to a halt and turned around. Charmeleon moved quickly and sidestepped, causing Raichu's body to slam into the ground. With the Electric Pokemon lying on the ground and momentarily dazed from the Body Slam that he failed to land, Charmeleon slashed Raichu with the Metal Claw.

"Rai..." Raichu trailed, trying to get up. But it was no use.

"Raichu is unable to battle. The winner is the challenger, Jason Oak!" the referee cried.

"Way to go, Charmeleon you did it!" I said.

Lt. Surge walked over to me and said, "I must say, I didn't think a Charmeleon would be able to beat my Raichu. You and your Pokemon really surprised me. Here is the Thunder Badge."

"Thanks. Raichu is one tough opponent." I said, glancing at the badge. "Badge number three!" I cried as I placed it in my badge case.

"That was a good battle that you and Charmeleon put on." Michelle said as we left the gym.

"Yeah. For a moment, I didn't think Charmeleon was going to be able to move in time. I thought he was going to get hit by the Body Slam." Adam said.

"Yeah, I did too. He's become a lot quicker since evolving."

"The Metal Claw didn't cause Raichu to faint." Michelle said.

"Huh?" I asked, confused.

"The Metal Claw made Raichu weak, but the burn came into the picture at the last second and drained whatever energy Raichu had left. The burn won you the match." she explained.

"How did you see that? I didn't even see it." I asked.

"Yeah, how? I didn't see it, either." Adam asked.

"I just did. Must be something that I picked up from you boys. I do watch you train all the time."

I will admit, when we first met Michelle and found out that she wanted to be a coordinator, I didn't really want her to travel with us. I thought she would slow us down as Adam and I went through the region for our badges, but she didn't. She's gained my respect and she's a good coordinator, too. And now she's like a sister to us as well. I guess that's what happens when you're an only child; your friends become like your siblings. And I had to admit, I had a really great brother and sister to travel with.

"So, are you entering the contest?" Adam asked, glancing at Michelle.

"Oh yeah, there's a contest. Are you entering?" I asked.

"Of course I'm going to enter. If that's okay with you guys." she said.

"Fine with me. Go for that second ribbon." I said.

"Yeah, what Jason said." Adam replied.

"Thanks!"

"When is the contest?" I asked.

"The day after tomorrow." she answered. It looked like we were going to be in Vermillion City for a few more days.

As we walked back towards the Pokemon Center, I couldn't help but feel sad. Yesterday, Adam learned that many people were believing that his dad is dead and that he has nine months to return or his title would be given to someone else. Sure, some people were believing he's still out there, but those negative comments really got to Adam.

"You okay, Jason?" Adam asked.

I snapped from my thoughts and glanced at him. "Yeah, I was just thinking." I replied. He looked like he was going to ask something and I had to change the topic. "So Michelle, are you catching another Pokemon to use in the contest or are you sticking with Poliwag and Eevee?"

"I'm going to catch another Pokemon. You guys go ahead and head back to the Pokemon Center. I'm gonna go look for a Pokemon." she replied.

"Okay, see ya." I said, casting a wave.

"See ya later." Adam said.

"Later!" she cried, running the way we had just came.

**Michelle's POV**

I walked towards the tall grass. I wanted to catch a Fire type, but what kind?

"Hmm..."

"Eevee!" Eevee cried suddenly.

I looked up and saw a Growlithe standing in the grass.

"It's so cute! Growlithe is a strong battler and it's an amazing Pokemon to use in contests, too." I exclaimed.

"Showtime, Poliwag!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

Upon hearing my voice, the Growlithe looked up. "Growl! Growlithe!" it cried.

"Poliwag!" Poliwag cried landing on the ground.

"Poliwag, Water Gun!" The blast of water shot towards Growlithe, who used Flamethrower. The two moves collided, but the Water Gun was stronger and hit Growlithe, doing a good amount of damage.

"Now, Poliwag! Use Hypnosis!" I hoped to put Growlithe to sleep, making it easier to catch.

But before I knew it, Growlithe had started running and used Bite before Poliwag had time to use Hypnosis. That Growlithe was fast!

"Water Gun once more and then follow it up with Hypnosis!"

"Poli!"

The Water Gun hit Growlithe, dazing it for a few moments. Taking advantage of its dazed state, Poliwag used Hypnosis.

"Growl..." Growlithe's eyes drooped and closed.

I removed an empty Pokeball and threw it towards the sleeping Growlithe. Growlithe was engulfed in the light and after the ball wiggled three times, it stopped.

"Yes! You did it, Poliwag!" I cried happily.

"Take a rest, you did good." I said, removing Poliwag's Pokeball and returning Poliwag.

I walked over and picked up Growlithe's Pokeball, shrunk it down, and attached it to my bracelet.

"Well Eevee, I think we'll do good in our contest now. We have another new friend on the team that can make some incredible combos and I think is a good battler. What do you think?"

"Eevee!"

I rubbed her head and headed back towards the Pokemon Center to show the boys my new Pokemon.

**Author's Note: Adding TWO new Fire Pokemon to the group, and a badge to Jason's case, our heroes have had a heck of a day!**

**Be sure to read the next chapter as Michelle competes for her second ribbon! How will she fare? Will she win? How well will her new Growlithe perform?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	16. Still Not Enough

**Author's Note: Hey there! Sorry that we haven't updated in so long, but here's chapter 16!**

**Michelle's POV**

I needed to practice with Growlithe for the contest that was today, I had asked Jason if we could battle and surprisingly, he said yes.

We had been practicing for only a short while, and already, Jason was so confused. My contest moves I had come up with for Growlithe were working and he didn't really understand contest moves, how they work, and how to deal with them, unlike Adam. So why did I ask him to train with me instead of Adam? Because Growlithe needed some Fire type training against Charmeleon. It would be better for Growlithe to battle Charmeleon rather than Adam's Charmander.

"Growlithe, Bite!" I cried. Growlithe ran towards Charmeleon and Jason waited for his chance.

"Metal Claw!" he shouted. Charmeleon used Metal Claw and it hit right as Growlithe was near.

"Growlithe, no!" I cried.

But Growlithe jumped up and shook itself. "Growl!"

"Alright Growlithe, let's finish this. Use Flame Wheel!" I cried. Surrounding itself in flames and spinning along the ground towards Charmeleon, I added a little something to the attack. "Use Flamethrower while you're spinning!" I glanced up and saw that Jason looked confused.

"Do it!" I cried. Growlithe's Flame Wheel continued and a Flamethrower came out and hit Charmeleon and then the Flame Wheel hit, too. Adam had shown me this Fire combo earlier after telling me about how his dad had used it in a gym battle in Sinnoh against a Ghost Pokemon.

"It worked!" I cried. "It looks like my combination moves are ready for the contest!"

"You done?" Jason asked. I nodded my head and Jason returned Charmeleon.

"Good job, Growlithe." I said, returning it. Jason and Adam walked over to me.

"That was...different." Jason said.

"I had you guessing and unsure of everything." I said proudly.

"Well, I'm not used to contest moves. I'm a pure battler."

"I know. You should learn, though. Adam knows about contest moves."

"His mom's a coordinator!"

"I know," I said as I smiled, thinking of my hero/idol.

"You know, my dad learned a lot from my mom about how contest moves can be used to win battles. He told me that he never would've become a Pokemon Master if it wasn't for her." Adam said to Jason. "I think integrating contest moves might help you become stronger trainer, too."

Adam then looked at me and said, "Growlithe is doing good. You two have a good bond."

"Thanks, Adam. With my new Pokemon, I'm sure to win today!"

* * *

><p>Later that day, it was time for my contest. I stood backstage in my contest outfit, talking with Adam and Jason. I hadn't seen Nikki around yet.<p>

"Good luck, Michelle." Adam said.

"Yeah, good luck and have fun." Jason said.

I nodded my head and thanked them.

"We gotta get to our seats or we won't get to watch. See you after the appeals round." Adam said, heading towards the doors.

Jason nodded towards me and left. I walked over to a chair and sat down.

"Hi, hi!" Nikki cried, walking over towards me.

"Hey, Nikki." I said.

"So are you ready?" Nikki asked, plopping down into a chair.

"Yeah, gonna try and get my second ribbon."

"Me too, good luck."

"You too,"

The buzzer went off signalling that the contest was starting.

"Good afternoon, everybody! It's time for another contest. Today the contestants will be competing for the Vermillion City Ribbon! I'm Jillian, your host! Now let's meet our wonderful judges!" Jillian cried.

"We have Shawn Contesta!" Jillian cried.

"Glad to be here and I can't wait to see what everyone has planned. Good luck to you all." he said.

"Now the President of the Pokemon Fan Club, Mr. Tatsu!"

"Pokemon Contests and Pokemon! Fun is in store!" he cried.

"Lastly, we have our very own Nurse Joy!"

"Glad to be here and I can't wait to see all the wonderful performances." she said, smiling.

"Well, now that we've met our wonderful judges, let's meet our wonderful coordinators! Entry one, you're up!" Jillian cried.

The contest continued on with some good performances and then some bad ones. One coordinator, a rookie's first contest got scared and she couldn't perform. I felt bad for her. She was so embarrassed and it didn't help when one coordinator was laughing and being mean to her.

My turn was next and I stood up and walked towards the door.

"Next up, we have Michelle!" Jillian cried.

I ran out and jumped over the steps and landed. "Eevee, spotlight!" I cried, spinning and tossing my Pokeball. Bubbles appeared and Eevee landed as the bubbles popped.

"Eevee, Shadow Ball!" I cried. Eevee lifted her head up and shot the Shadow Ball towards the ceiling.

"Now jump and use Bite!" I cried. Eevee jumped into the air and bit the Shadow Ball in her mouth. I heard people go "Ohh" and "Ahh" and "Wow" as Eevee performed that move.

"Sand Attack and Shadow Ball!" Eevee landed and used Sand Attack. The sand covered Eevee ever so slightly and before you lost sight of her completely, she used Shadow Ball, with the sand mixing into it.

Eevee stood still and I smiled, pleased with the result of Sand Attack and Shadow Ball.

"What a wonderful performance!" Jillian cried.

"A good performance. For a second, I thought Eevee was going to be completely covered." Shawn said.

"Eevee had a lot of fun!" Mr. Tatsu exclaimed, smiling.

"Wonderful performance." Nurse Joy said.

I walked backstage and released my breath. I looked for Nikki, but she wasn't there. She was next.

"Next up is Nikki!" Jillian cried.

Nikki ran onto the stage and ran down the stairs and tossed her Pokeball.

"Electabuzz!" Electabuzz cried, landing on the stage.

"Electabuzz, use Swift!" Stars shot into the air and formed together to make a huge one.

"Now Thunder Punch!" Electabuzz jumped into the air and punched the big star that the little stars had formed. Electricity circled around the star before it burst. Electabuzz landed on the stage and Nikki curtsied.

"A wonderful electric performance!" Jillian cried.

"What a wonderful performance! Brilliant!" Shawn cried.

"So much static and power!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"A change for normal performances. Wonderful all the same, though." Nurse Joy said.

Nikki walked back to the room and walked over to where I sat.

"Wow," I said.

"I know. It might have been two simple moves, but we worked hard for that to work." she said.

"That was good, though. Nurse Joy was right. That IS a change from usual performances."

"Yeah, I know."

A few more coordinators performed and then we were waiting to see who would move on.

"Now to show the eight coordinators who will be moving on to the battle rounds!" Jillian cried.

The screen popped up and this was the order; Nikki, some guy, some girl, me, some girl, some girl, some girl, and some guy.

"YES!" Nikki and I cried.

Adam and Jason walked into the room and over to me.

"Good job, both of you." Adam said.

"Thanks," Nikki and I said.

"Yeah, you two did good." Jason said.

"Thanks,"

Trevor had just entered the room. Nikki excused herself and walked to her brother.

"Now to show who will be facing who." The screen popped up and I was paired with some girl and we had to battle first.

"Well, I gotta go. Wish me luck!" I cried, placing a seal on my ball capsule.

"Good luck," Adam and Jason said to me. I laughed and walked out of the room towards the stage.

Soon, it was the semifinal match. So far, I was winning all of my battles and Nikki was, too. "It's time for the semifinal match! On my left is Nikki, and on my right is Michelle! Five minutes on the clock, and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Growlithe, spotlight!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball. Growlithe landed on the stage and cried its name happily.

"Dratini, curtain!" Nikki cried, tossing her Pokeball to reveal Dratini.

"Growlithe, use Flamethrower!"

"Dratini, use Twister!"

The two moves collided, but the Twister extinguished the Flamethrower and hit Growlithe. My points decreased a good bit from that one move!

"Now, Dratini! Use Aqua Tail!"

I waited until Dratini was close and told Growlithe to dodge and use Bite. It worked and Nikki lost some points.

"Dratini, use Slam!"

"Flame Wheel, Growlithe!"

Both Pokemon ran towards one another, Growlithe becoming a wheel of fire. When Dratini was close, I smirked, ready to use my move that I practiced.

"Flamethrower!" With Flame Wheel still going, Growlithe used Flamethrower. Dratini was caught off-guard as the Flamethrower hit, damaging it. Growlithe, meanwhile, slammed into Dratini with Flame Wheel. Now that's what I call a one-two punch!

My points were now a little higher than Nikki's, thanks to that combo. We had about two and a half minutes left.

"Dratini, Twister!"

"Growlithe, dodge!"

Growlithe dodged at first, but the Twister followed and it got hit.

"Growl!" Growlithe cried, struggling to get up.

"One minute left!" Jillian cried.

"We've got to try to make a comeback. We've lost more points..." I muttered. I tried to figure out a way, but couldn't get one.

"Hyper Beam!" Nikki cried. Dratini started charging the attack.

"Flamethrower!"

The two moves went at the same time and collided. Growlithe started sliding backwards and tried to stay in place. Try as it might, Growlithe couldn't hang on! The Hyper Beam overpowered the Flamethrower and hit Growlithe.

"Growlithe, no!" I yelled.

The buzzer rang and then Jillian's voice said, "Time's up!"

"The winner who will be moving on to the finals is..." she trailed. "Nikki!"

I walked over and knelt down beside Growlithe. "You did your best. Thank you," I said, petting Growlithe's head and returning it. I knew Dragon Pokemon were strong, but I never thought that they'd be THAT strong!

I stood up and walked back to the room to get changed and also congratulate Nikki when she came. Nikki ran into the room behind me.

"That was a good battle, Michelle. You're a great rival to have." Nikki said.

"Thanks. You are, too. You kept me on my toes today." I said.

"Well, wish me luck?"

"Good luck, and that was a good battle today."

I grabbed my bag and went to change. When I finished changing, the finals had started. I walked out of the room and went to sit with Adam and Jason, but I couldn't find them. But after a second look, I noticed them..

The battle continued and Nikki won the whole thing. When we were leaving the building, we ran into her and Trevor.

"Congrats,"

"Thanks,"

Trevor then looked at Adam and said, "By the way, I managed to beat Lt. Surge in a rematch today. So don't think that you're any stronger than me." And then the two of them left.

I walked behind Adam and Jason, who were talking to each other. I was sad that I had lost, but it was only my second contest. You win some and you lose some. But still, I had worked so hard to pull off two moves at once like that, and it still wasn't enough.

"I'll be back later." Adam said, walking away from Jason and I. Before we could reply, Adam walked off.

"Okay then..." Jason said and muttered something else.

I silently wondered where he was going.

Back at our room in the Pokemon Center, I laid on the bed with Eevee napping beside me. I sighed quietly so Jason wouldn't hear. I was replaying the battle in my mind, hoping that I could figure out what I had done wrong and what I could've done differently...but I came up with nothing. Tears of frustration fell from my eyes and slid down my cheeks. I had tried to hold them back, but couldn't.

Suddenly, there was movement outside our door and then the door opened. It was Adam. He slid the key into his pocket and walked into the room. He looked at me with some concern. He must've noticed that I was crying.

"Where did you go?" I asked, wiping my face.

"Oh, just down to the Vermillion Harbour."

"Why?"

"I got us tickets for one of the luxury cruise ships."

I stared at Adam in shock. Was he just pulling my leg?

"Really?!" I cried. I mentally hit myself for sounding like such a girly girl, but I had always wanted to go on one of Vermillion City's luxury cruise ships.

"Yeah, three tickets. I noticed that you seemed kind of sad after losing today, so I thought this would be a good way to cheer you up. Besides, I've wanted to go on one of them ever since we got to Vermillion City. It leaves tomorrow at noon."

I was so happy, that I ran over and hugged Adam warmly. He hugged back after a second of surprise. I guess he wasn't expecting me to react THAT happily! "You sure know how to cheer me up! Thank you so much, Adam!"

"Don't mention it, Michelle." he said, releasing me from my hug. "Besides, you and Jason are like family to me. It's very important to me about how you all feel, just like when you guys comforted me when I found out about my dad."

"Well, you've made my day...brother." It felt good to call him that.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

In the lower levels of Team Rocket's hidden base, a long row of submarines were lined up in the water in their docking stations. Darien stood beside one of the subs, overlooking the final preparations as the grunts worked to get it ready. Suddenly, a voice came from his earpiece. It was the boss of Team Rocket, who was also his father.

"Darien, is the submarine ready yet?" he asked.

"Almost, father." Darien replied. "We should be ready to leave tomorrow."

"Excellent. Just remember to keep a low profile."

Unknown to everybody, one of the grunts that was working on the sub was contemplating a way to stop Team Rocket from accomplishing this mission.

**Author's Note: Even with all of her hard work and preparation, Michelle ends up losing in her contest to Nikki. Luckily, Adam seems to have found a way to cheer her up: a cruise! What will the three of them experience on this ship?**

**But Team Rocket is preparing to strike again! And what are they planning to do with their submarine? Team Rocket also appears to have a traitor in their ranks. Who is this grunt that's secretly planning to try and stop them?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	17. A Cruise and A Catastrophe

**Author's Note: A fair warning, readers: Prepare yourselves. This is the most shocking, emotional, and heartfelt chapter yet!**

**Normal POV**

Adam, Jason, and Michelle walked along the harbor looking for the ship they were supposed to be sailing on.

"Adam, what ship are we supposed to get on?" Jason asked, glancing at Adam who was looking at a huge, white luxury cruise ship.

"This is the ship we are taking. This is the S.S. Ketchum." Adam said.

Michelle's mouth dropped open and Jason was shocked.

"How could you afford three tickets for a ship of this size?" Michelle asked in amazement.

"Yeah, how did you do it, dude?" Jason asked, equally as shocked as Michelle.

"Well, I'm the son of the Pokemon Master and Top Coordinator." Adam replied. "I could afford this pretty easily."

"Oh, yeah. Right."

Adam glanced at the two and shook his head, sighing. "Let's go."

That one sentence broke the two out of their shocked states. The three walked onboard the ship and were amazed at what they saw when they entered inside.

The walls were painted not white, but almost grayish with a horizontal red line in the middle, while the floors were wooden. It looked like oak wood. The three walked over to the front desk where a young man stood dressed in a uniform.

"Hello and welcome aboard the S.S. Ketchum. Tickets, please." he said. The three of them handed the man their tickets. The man handed each of them a map. "This is a map of the ship. You should be able to find your way around. The ship will sail out to sea for the night and return to Vermillion City tomorrow morning. You need a room, correct?" he asked.

"Yes, sir." Adam said.

The man typed in something and then walked to the wall behind him. "Three beds and two bathrooms are in this room. Your room number is one hundred, located on the bottom of the ship. Enjoy your stay aboard the S.S. Ketchum." the man said, handing each of them a key.

"Thank you,"

The map of the ship showed a pool, a hot tub, a spa, two battlefields for battles and training, a Pokemon Center, a daycare center where the Pokemon can play, an arcade, a ballroom, several stores to buy supplies and souvenirs, and a restaurant with buffet tables.

Soon the ship was pulling out of the port and the group had decided they were going to split up and check out different things on board that they wanted to see.

* * *

><p><strong>Michelle's POV<strong>

I decided to go to the daycare center to drop off Eevee, Poliwag, and Growlithe to have fun while I had fun, too. After I dropped my Pokemon off, I was going to go to the spa, after reading about the yoga session they offered. My mom had told me yoga is a good way to relax. And I needed it with everything that had been going on, especially after my contest.

I walked into the daycare center and saw many Pokemon running around. I spotted a Pichu and a Pikachu playing with one another. A Jigglypuff drawing on a Psyduck's face, since it was sleeping.

"Hi! How may I help you?" a teenager asked, walking out from a room holding a Togepi in her arms.

"I got three more for you." I said.

"Okay, just sign your name and the Pokemon names. What are the three Pokemon?" the girl asked.

I glanced at the girl. She looked to be seventeen at the oldest. She had blonde hair pulled into a sloppy bun, orange eyes, and she was tanned. She wore a pair of jeans with a button up green shirt with a green apron around her waist.

"Eevee, Poliwag, and Growlithe." I said, signing my name.

"Okay. Please leave the Pokeballs. This is a requirement, because if a Pokemon gets into a fight, I must return it. It's the ship's rules." the girl explained.

"Okay, no problem."

"Oh, and please put some type of symbol on your Pokeballs and make a little side note. That way, you'll know which Pokeballs are yours. I have a lot of Pokeballs in the back room."

I glanced at my bracelet, which had my Pokeballs attached to it.

"Care to take my bracelet?" I asked.

"Okay,"

I released my Pokemon, and Eevee hopped down from my head. "Now you three be nice and have fun, okay?" I told them.

I unhooked my bracelet and hooked it onto the girl's wrist.

"Thanks,"

"Mhmm. No problem. Thanks for stopping by and don't worry, your Pokemon will be taken care of."

I left the daycare center and checked the map. I found the location of the spa and headed towards it.

I was glad my mom had packed me two sets of pajamas. I walked into the spa and looked around.

"Welcome,"

I glanced towards the front counter and saw a young woman sitting there.

"Hi, I saw that there is a yoga class..." I trailed.

"Oh yes, there is, sweetie. You're pretty young to be into yoga, but we do have it. Here, I'll show you."

"Thank you,"

The lady got up from behind counter and lead me towards the back. "Here is the locker room. Go ahead and get changed. Here is a key for locker, number ten. Put your things in the locker. I'll be waiting out here for you." she said.

I nodded my head and walked into the locker room. I unlocked locker ten and opened it. I changed into a pair of white sweat pants, a light blue shirt, and slid my sneakers back on. I closed the locker and locked it. I pulled my hair into a sloppy bun and walked out.

"If you don't mid me asking, but are you related to Misty Waterflower the Cerulean City?" the lady asked.

"Yes, she's my mom." I replied.

"Oh! You're Michelle Waterflower! I saw your contest debut. You were wonderful."

"Thank you,"

"Here you are. This is where the yoga takes place. It'll be starting in five minutes. Have fun."

I nodded my head and walked into the room, picked a blue mat and waited. Soon the yoga session was starting, but I ended up leaving early. Those yoga moves were too complex for me.

"Hmm...I think I'm going to go for a swim instead. That's a better way to relax for me." I muttered as I left the spa.

I walked to the top deck and saw that there weren't many people at the pool. A group of girls, a boy a few years older than me, an old man and woman, and a family of three. I put my bag down on a white chair that wasn't occupied. I grabbed my swimsuit and went to the changing rooms. I walked back out and put my clothes in my bag.

The pool was pretty big with two dive boards, the high dive and the low dive. I stepped into the pool and the water wasn't too cold but wasn't too warm, either. It was like the pool at home in the gym.

I dove under and swam for a little while before coming back up. I always enjoyed swimming, just like my mom. She had taught me to swim when I was just a little girl. Growing up, people always used to tell me how graceful I looked when I swam, gliding through the water with ease.

Swimming was a great way for me to relax my mind and body, much better than yoga. After a few minutes of swimming around, I lay very still on my back, floating as I closed my eyes, feeling the water flow around my body. It was pure bliss for me at that moment. I felt like I didn't have a care in the world.

"You're Michelle Waterflower, aren't you?" a voice asked. I turned around and found the group of girls. Seeing them up close, I figured that they were at least fifteen or sixteen.

"Yes...why?" I asked.

"I saw you in the Vermillion City contest."

"Oh," I was on this trip to be cheered up. I wasn't about to let these girls ruin it. "What do you want?"

"We just wanted to say, learn how to fight against Dragon types. Your battle showed you had never faced a Dragon Pokemon. If need be, catch a Dragon type; they're a good type of Pokemon to have. We all have Dragons."

"Thanks for the advice."

"No problem, we'll be watching the contests and maybe we'll see you again in one."

The group left and I shook my head. I swam for a little while longer and then I laid on the chair to dry off before I changed.

* * *

><p><strong>Jason's POV<strong>

Michelle bolted after we decided we were going to split up and meet back later. I glanced at the map again and sighed.

"What to do?" I asked myself.

I looked to see where the battlefields were. "I think I'll go and see if there's someone who wants to battle." I walked to the bottom floor and walked into one of the rooms that lead to one of the battlefields.

"The winner is Kristen! Kristen has three wins and zero loses. Who will challenge her next?" a boy about a year older than me cried.

I followed the green flag and found the girl known as Kristen. Kristen had to be at least thirteen. She had dark brown hair cropped to her chin, silver eyes, and she was tanned.

"Good job, Pikachu." she said, praising her Pikachu as she returned it.

"Any challengers?" the boy asked. A few people stepped back and the ones in the stands waited.

"Come on, it's just a friendly competition." Kristen said as she attached the Pokeball to her belt.

"A battle, hmm...I can go for a battle." I muttered to myself.

"I challenge you," I said.

Kristen looked over towards the voice and saw me walking forward. "Yay!" she cried, taking her side. I walked to the other side and waited.

"Name?" the boy asked.

"Jason,"

He nodded and took his place at the middle of the field. "The battle between Kristen and Jason will begin momentarily. This will be one on one, when one Pokemon is unable to battle, the match is over. Battle begin!"

"Magmar, let's roll!" Kristen cried, tossing her Pokeball.

"Magmar!" Magmar cried landing on the ground.

"Golduck, go!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Golduck!" Golduck cried.

"Use Water Gun, Golduck!" I cried.

"Flamethrower!" Kristen cried.

The two moves collided and fought for dominance. Being a Water Pokemon, Golduck's water beat Magmar's fire and Magmar was hit by the Water Gun.

"Mag!" Magmar cried.

"Magmar, Smokescreen!"

I smirked and waited for the smoke to cover the field. I scanned the smoke and found the faint glow of Magmar's tail. "Golduck, use Aqua Jet there!" I cried, pointing to where the glow was.

"Golduck!" Golduck cried as water surrounded it and it launched itself towards Magmar like a missile.

"Magmar, dodge, quick!" Kristen cried. Magmar emerged from the now fading smoke. The attack had hit its mark.

"Haven't you forgotten?" I said with a cocky smile, "Aqua Jet is so fast, it always strikes first!"

"Use Flamethrower!" she yelled, starting to get angry about how the battle was turning out. The Flamethrower shot towards Golduck who had its back turned. The attack hit, but did little damage to Golduck.

"Just try to avoid this one!" I said, taunting her. "Golduck, use Confusion!"

"Magmar, no!" Kristen cried as psychic waves surrounded Magmar.

Magmar struggled to get up after the attack and stood still for a moment. "Mag..." it said weakly as it fell to the ground, defeated.

"Magmar is unable to battle! The winner is Jason and Golduck!"

"Good job, Golduck. Take a rest." I said, returning Golduck. I walked over to Kristen.

"Well Jason, that was a good battle. That Golduck of yours is a great battler." she said.

"Thanks. Your Magmar is a good battler, too." I said.

I walked out of the room and looked at the map. "What else can I do?" I asked myself.

I walked towards the Pokemon Center to get Golduck healed and then I would take my Pokemon to the Daycare so they can have fun, too.

I walked into the Pokemon Center and found Nurse Joy standing behind the counter.

"Even on a cruise ship, there's a Pokemon Center." I muttered as I unhooked Golduck's Pokeball from my belt.

"Hello, how may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Can you heal my Golduck?" I asked.

She nodded and took the Pokeball. I looked around and found the television and it was showing the contest from yesterday. It showed Michelle and Nikki's battle. I re-watched the battle until Nurse Joy said my name.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." I said, taking my Pokeball.

She nodded her head and I walked out. I walked a little ways and entered the daycare. I glanced around and saw an Eevee, Poliwag, and Growlithe.

"Looks like Michelle came here." I muttered. I walked to the desk and signed my name and the Pokemon I had.

"Ow!" I glanced over the desk and saw a girl sitting up, rubbing her head. She must've been looking for something under her desk. She glanced up and saw me.

"Sorry, how may I help you?" she asked, standing up.

"Here to drop off my Pokemon."

"Okay, go ahead and release them. Please leave your Pokeballs, but make a side note of something different on them so we know which ones are yours."

I nodded my head and released my Pokemon. "You three have fun and be good." I said, and glanced at my Pokeballs.

"I don't have anything to mark my Pokeballs." I said.

The girl just nodded her head and took them from me. "Don't worry, I have a spot where I won't lose them."

I nodded my head and left.

"What should I do next?" I muttered.

I didn't want to do anything, but I decided to head to the arcade just to see what they had. I walked into the arcade and it was pretty nice. The lights were turned off with colored lights blinking around, the games lighting up the area where they were, and a pool table in a far corner with a pair of people playing.

I saw a game that I had played when I was eight and went to play it. The game was called Super Smash Bros and it was pretty fun.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

"Okay, I need to drop off my Pokemon and then..." I trailed as I walked towards the daycare.

"Pika..." Pikachu said.

"What, you don't want to be dropped off?" I asked.

"Chu."

"Don't you want to have fun?"

"Chu..."

"Okay then,"

I walked into the daycare and saw a lot of Pokemon. I spotted what I thought was Michelle's and Jason's Pokemon, who were probably dropped off earlier. I walked to the front desk and signed in and wrote the names of my Pokemon.

"Psy!" a Psyduck cried.

I glanced over at the Pokemon and saw a Psyduck with black marker on its face. I looked at the Psyduck and saw why it had cried out, it was looking at its reflection.

"Dile!" a Totodile cried, shooting a Water Gun at the Psyduck.

"Psy-aye-aye!"

"No!" A girl ran over to the desk and looked at the list. She ran to the back room and didn't return.

"Totodile!"

The Totodile ran towards Psyduck about to use Bite or Crunch.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried, leaping off my shoulder. He was going to take matters into his own hands!

Pikachu stood between Psyduck and Totodile.

"Pika..."

"Totodile!" Totodile cried, using Water Gun at Pikachu.

"Return!" Totodile was returned and so was the Psyduck.

"I'm so sorry Totodile attacked your Pikachu. It seemed to have gotten in a fight with some other Pokemon." she said.

"It's fine. Pikachu has taken worse hits than that. I have some more Pokemon for you."

"Okay. Anything different about your Pokeballs?"

"No,"

She just nodded her head. I released my Pokemon and faced them.

"Be good, okay?" They nodded their heads. I placed my Pokeballs on the desk.

The girl looked at me with a thoughtful look. "Are you...the son of Master Ketchum?" she asked.

I glanced at her and nodded my head.

"Well, just for the record, I don't believe what the news says." she said. "I think he's still alive."

"Thank you." I said honestly and gratefully.

She nodded her head and I left.

"Now what can we do?" I asked Pikachu. I looked at the map and thought. "Let's go check out the shops and see what they have. Maybe we can find something for mom." I said.

I walked to where the shops were and entered a shop that seemed to sell any souvenir.

"Please make sure your Pokemon stays with you." an old man said from behind the counter.

"I will, sir." I said.

He nodded his head and I walked through the store.

This shop sold shirts, purses, bags, little ships, and some Dive Balls. I also saw hats and sunglasses. I walked towards the back of the store and stopped in my tracks.

On the wall hung a picture of my dad. Below the picture, it read, "Master Ash Ketchum. This ship was named in his honor. This area has many things Master Ketchum has signed and/or donated. Please do enjoy your stay on the S.S. Ketchum." I walked to the area and looked. Sure enough, there were playing cards that had my dad's signature on them and pictures of my dad with some of his famous sayings on them.

I walked away and looked at the bags again. "Do you think mom will like this?" I asked, holding up a dark blue bag with white text on it that read "S.S. Ketchum".

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed.

I nodded my head and walked around the store. I looked at the sunglasses. I grabbed two black pairs and one white pair for me and my friends. I walked to the counter and put the items on the counter. The old man rang up the items and put them in a bag.

"Your total is..."

I paid and thanked him. I started walking away and I heard the old man say something about my dad. I stopped and turned around.

"What did you say, sir?" I asked.

"It's a shame what happened to your father." he said.

I looked at the man. He was one of the ones who believed my dad was gone. I just shook my head and left.

"Pikachu, you want to train?" I asked.

"Pika!"

I walked to where the battlefields were and entered the one where you could practice.

"Great! We can practice alone here." I said. I set the bag on the ground along with my backpack.

"Okay Pikachu, let's do this."

Pikachu hopped down and waited.

"Use Iron Tail!" Pikachu ran and jumped as his tail became iron and slammed his tail into the ground.

"Okay, use your counter-shield!" Pikachu used Thunderbolt while spinning.

"Use Volt Tackle towards the wall and stop before you hit the wall." Pikachu ran and was covered by electricity and turned right before he would hit the wall.

"Good job, Pikachu. Nice reflexes." I said.

I heard footsteps and looked behind me. A girl about my age had walked in and stopped.

"Sorry...I just ummm...I just saw your ummm...Pikachu using ummm..." she said, her words trailing off.

"What?" I asked.

"That move...it was...ummm it-it was a contest move...right?"

"I...guess?"

"Two of those moves...they were contest moves."

"I know one was."

"H-how did yo-you come up wi-with th-the-them?"

"I didn't. My mom did. She's a coordinator"

"Oh..."

Pikachu hopped onto my shoulder. The girl walked away and I wondered why she was so nervous around me. I decided I was done with training.

"We'll train some more later, Pikachu." I said.

I couldn't really focus on training after what that man had said. Sure, I didn't believe it, but I just hate the fact that people are thinking it.

I walked around the ship and ended up in the lobby. I glanced at the clock to find that it was later than I thought.

"Hey, Adam." Jason said, walking over.

"Hey," I said.

"Where's Michelle?" he asked.

"I don't kn- you know, I bet she's by the pool." I said, stopping in mid-sentence. Michelle does love the water, after all.

"Well, how about we go and find her and then go and eat some supper?"

"Fine with me."

We walked to the deck and to the pool. We found Michelle standing at the railing looking at the water. She didn't have Eevee with her so I guess those were her Pokemon that I saw in the Daycare Center.

"Hey, Michelle." we said, walking up to her.

She turned around and smiled.

"Hey, guys. Adam, once again, thanks so much for getting these tickets." she said.

"My pleasure,"

"You wanna come with us and get some supper?" Jason asked.

"Yeah, I'm starved. All that swimming gave me an appetite."

We walked back into the ship and got all of our Pokemon back from the Daycare Center. Then we headed to where the food was served.

After eating, we walked to the bottom floor and found our room.

"Wow,"

The room was awesome. It had three beds with dark blue sheets. The walls were white and the floor was red carpet. A bathroom was also in the room.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm tired." Michelle said, walking to the bathroom to get into her pajamas.

Soon we were in our beds. I glanced to the back wall and saw a window. The window showed the moon and the stars.

"'Night," I said.

"'Night," Jason said.

"'Night, you guys." Michelle said.

I looked at one star in the sky and said goodnight to my dad...wherever he was.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

A submarine was traveling under the sea, heading to intercept the S.S. Ketchum. It had a red "R" on its sides. On the sub was one of Team Rocket's elite commanders, Darien. He sat in the command chair on the bridge as a crew of grunts in black uniforms were at their computer screens, monitoring the various systems.

_When the world hears about what we're about to do, it will throw the world into a state of fear and confusion. And this will be just a taste of what's to come for them!_ Darien thought to himself.

"Commander Darien," said a female grunt, "We have the targeted ship in range."

"Good. Are there any other ships in the area?"

"No, sir. Nothing on radar."

"Is the E.M.P. torpedo ready?"

"Loading it now, sir." said a male grunt.

"The E.M.P. will create an electromagnetic pulse that will shut down their radio, G.P.S., engines, and all other electrical power on the ship. It'll be dead in the water, unable to move or communicate. Make sure we stay at a safe distance from the ship or we'll be caught in the blast radius. Once we're certain that the ship can't call for help, we'll begin the assault. And we have to make it fast before they realize what's happening. We're so far out at sea, that we'll be long gone by the time help comes for them."

"Torpedo ready, Commander."

"Put the periscope's image on the main screen." An image of the S.S. Ketchum appeared in front of him. "Match bearings to the ship...target locked...launch now!" A grunt pressed the launch button and the torpedo sped through the water.

"Torpedo running." said the grunt monitoring the projectile. "Distance to target is 10,000 meters...5000 meters...1000...500...100."

"Detonate now!" Darien called out. He pressed a button and the E.M.P. was released as the torpedo exploded, releasing its electric waves through the water and into the cruise ship. On the main screen, the entire ship went dark.

"E.M.P. successful, sir."

"Good. Now for Phase 2. Bring us in closer and then release the Gyarados! Begin the assault!"

Hatches on the sides of the submarine were opened and more than a dozen angry Gyarados swam towards the cruise ship, firing Hyper Beams and Dragonbreath attacks. The bottom hull of the ship had holes blown through it as water flooded the ship. Some Gyarados grabbed the torn edges of some holes with their mouths and used their incredible strength to rip the hull, making the holes larger. As the hull grew weaker, some of the Hyper Beams blew right through the bottom of the ship, all the way up through the decks, and out through the top!

The ship split into three pieces as it began to disappear beneath the waves. Anybody in the water who was still alive was crushed by large pieces of falling metal and debris. All of the Water Pokemon on the ship who hadn't been in their Pokeballs were killed by the Gyarados when they hit the water.

In the end, it only took fifteen minutes for the ship to completely sink beneath the waves. The only thing that was left floating on the water where the S.S. Ketchum had been only minutes before, was a tangled mess of metal, wood, Pokeballs, personal items, bags, clothes, and bodies of both people and Pokemon alike. Not a sound was heard.

Four hours later, rescue ships and helicopters had arrived after losing contact with the S.S. Ketchum. There was nothing they could do except begin to gather the bodies and debris floating on the water.

* * *

><p>Back in Pallet Town, Dawn, Leaf, and Gary sat in the living room of the Oak household. Dawn had walked over to talk with her friends and brought along Piplup and Buneary with her. Leaf sat on the couch beside Dawn chatting away while Gary lounged in the recliner. Piplup and Buneary, along with Leaf's Bellossom, were chatting in their Pokemon language.<p>

"Anymore news with the League?" Leaf asked.

"No, nothing about the League. Just more people voting and saying he's dead." Dawn replied softly.

Leaf hugged Dawn, trying to comfort her friend. "It'll be okay. He's out there somewhere." she said. "If there's one thing that I've learned about Ash in all the years that I've known him, it's that he always manages to pull through and beat any challenge that faces him, even when he, Gary, and I, were little kids growing up together."

Dawn nodded her head and smiled. "You're right, Leaf. I may not know where he is right now, but I know he'll come home when the time is right."

"I wonder where the boys are now?" Gary asked aloud.

"Vermillion City. Adam called me yesterday and said they'd be taking a cruise today, spend tonight onboard, and be back in the city tomorrow." Dawn answered.

"Isn't Misty's daughter traveling with them now, too?" asked Leaf.

"Yes. Her name's Michelle. She lost in her contest yesterday and Adam told me he was doing this as a way to cheer her up. They're sailing on the S.S. Ketchum, appropriately enough."

"Hopefully they had fun today. Cruises are a great way to relax and enjoy yourself."

"Do you two-" Gary started, but was stopped in mid sentence by a knock on the door. "I'll get it." he said, standing up. Gary walked out of the living room and to the right into a small hall.

"Officer Jenny?" Gary said, shocked.

"Hello, Prof. Gary. May I come in?"

Gary walked back to the living room with Officer Jenny following.

"Oh good, Dawn is here, too." she said softly. "That'll make things easier."

Dawn and Leaf looked at Officer Jenny with worried expressions.

"I have some news for all three of you. Gary, you might want to sit down." Officer Jenny said slowly.

Gary walked over to the recliner and sat down and waited for Officer Jenny. Leaf gripped Dawn's hand.

"Your children, Adam and Jason, along with the girl Michelle, are dead along with the Pokemon they had." Officer Jenny said.

Suddenly, time stopped and everything was silent.

Leaf felt her heart shatter. Her son was dead along with his Pokemon. Only ten years old and he was gone. Leaf felt rocked and had her hands in fists, biting her knuckles, something she only did when she was upset or scared...and hadn't done it in years, since she was usually always a joyful person. Tears fell from her eyes.

Gary's head was bent down. He was crying silently.

Dawn felt her whole world crumble. First Ash vanished, and now Adam was dead. She was all alone now, and had nobody left. She broke down into tears and it took everything she had not to fall to the floor and scream.

Buneary and Piplup were also crying. Both had just lost Pikachu, the love of one's life, and the other's best friend.

"H-How?" Gary asked looking at Officer Jenny.

Officer Jenny had a grief-stricken expression. "The S.S. Ketchum sank. We don't know what happened, but judging from all the debris, we believe it was attacked and destroyed by something...or someone...but we have no idea who or what did it.

"Everyone on board is dead. There are no survivors. Less than half of the bodies were found in the water and your children were not among them. Neither were their Pokemon. They, in all likelihood, drowned and went down with the ship. I'm so sorry for your losses." Officer Jenny then left the house.

Dawn and Leaf cried, hugging one another. Gary walked over and stood by the couch where the two sat. Leaf stood up and hugged her husband, crying into his chest. Gary glanced at Dawn who was looking at the roof, her body shaking. Her eyes flickered to him and he held his arm out to her. Dawn stood up came over to the two.

The three adults stood in the living room hugging and crying together.

"I h-h-have noone n-now. Th-they're b-b-both g-g-gone." Dawn said, softly stuttering.

**Author's Note: And so, Team Rocket strikes their most chilling blow yet. The S.S. Ketchum is gone, and Adam, Jason, and Michelle are dead. Is this all that there is? Is this the end of their journey...forever?**

**You'll have to wait and find out in the next chapter...if there even is another chapter.**

**The End...?**


	18. They're Alive!

**Author's Note: We're back for another chapter! You didn't really think we would end with everyone dying, right? Anyway, we're going to backtrack a bit and start this chapter immediately after the S.S. Ketchum sank.**

**Normal POV**

As the last bit of the S.S. Ketchum sank beneath the waves, the Gyarados returned to the Team Rocket sub, which then headed back to base.

But what Team Rocket failed to see was that just out of the range of their radar, another boat was nearby. It was a small one that had been trailing the S.S. Ketchum. On board was a man in his mid-thirties. He had smooth, dark brown hair that was slicked back, and brown eyes.

He was usually undercover, posing as a grunt for Team Rocket. He had heard about their plan back at the base and was too late to stop the sub from launching. He had then secretly sneaked away from the base and taken a fast boat, trying to catch up to the cruise ship. But half an hour later, as his boat sailed into the debris that littered the water, he immediately knew that he was too late.

Suddenly, he heard two very faint cries from somewhere off of the port bow. As he turned the boat to get a look, he saw that the cries were coming from a Pikachu and an Eevee who were barely alive. They were clinging to the bodies of three young children, who he immediately realized as the ones Team Rocket were trying to capture. He knew Team Rocket needed these three alive, so when they sank it, they couldn't have known that they were sailing on the ship.

He pulled the two Pokemon on to the boat, who slipped into unconsciousness due to exhaustion. He then pulled the three kids up and checked to see if the were alive. They were breathing very lightly and they had bruises covering their bodies. He guessed that they must have been knocked unconscious by falling debris from the ship, since they weren't waking up.

There was nothing more that he could do for them to help them wake up, so he knew that he had to get them to safety. So he covered them in emergency blankets, started up the engines for the boat, and headed back to Vermillion City as fast as he could.

When rescue ships arrived three and a half hours later, they found nobody alive. But no one knew that he had gotten there first.

* * *

><p><strong>Dawn's POV<strong>

I still couldn't believe the news about Adam that I received. I had to make two phone calls to two important people, but how could I do this? I could barely take the news myself...how would they handle it?

I glanced at the other side of the couch. Piplup and Buneary were on the last cushion. Buneary was asleep and she was heartbroken. Piplup was awake, but looked so sad.

"Well...it has to be done." I said, standing up. I walked towards the video phone and as I walked past a mirror, I saw my reflection. I was a mess. My hair was pulled into a sloppy ponytail so my hair wouldn't stick to my tear-stained face and my eyes were red and puffy.

"Who to call first?" I asked myself. I decided to dial my mother's number first. After three rings, she answered.

"Hello?" my mom's voice said.

"Hey mom," I said, coughing to clear my throat.

My mom's face appeared on the screen. Now in her mid fifties, her sapphire hair was a few shades lighter and streaked with silver. Her once dark sapphire eyes had shaded to a lighter blue, and her face had a few wrinkles.

"Hi Dawn! How are you?" she asked, smiling.

Her facial expression then filled with concern and worry as she noticed my appearance. "Dawn? Sweetie, what's wrong?"

"Mom...A-Ada-Adam's g-g-gone." I said, my eyes watering. "He's dead."

"What?!"

I nodded my head and the tears fell freely.

"H-How?" my mom asked, now crying over the loss of her only grandchild.

"H-He was on a ship with Jason and...and Misty's daughter, Michelle. The S.S. K-Ketchum was a-a-attacked and sank. No one...no one..." I said, not able to finish the sentence.

"D-Does Delia know yet?"

"No...I'm calling her next."

"Okay, Dawn...call Delia."

"I will. I love you, mom."

"Love you too, sweetie." she said sadly. The screen went black and the last thing I saw was my mom putting her head into her hands as she totally broke down.

I dialed Delia's number and waited. After two rings, she answered.

"Hi, Dawn. How are you?" she asked.

"Hi, Delia," I said.

She appeared on the screen and she looked at me. Delia was in her late fifties now. Her once reddish-brown hair became a light shade of brown with a few gray hairs and her face had a few more wrinkles than my mom's did. I saw that she had a red shirt on.

"Dawn, what's wrong?" she asked.

"I...I have some news..."

"What is it, dear?"

"A-Adam's gone."

"Wh-what?"

"He's g-g-gone. Dead. J-Jason's gone, too." I was still crying, my tears were just falling freely. Delia had tears falling silently.

"How?" she asked. Her voice was strangled and hurt. The same voice she had used when the news of Ash's death had been broken to her.

"The ship he was sailing on, i-it was a-a-attacked. N-no one- no one l-li-liv-" Once again, I couldn't complete the sentence.

"No..." Delia said quietly while shaking her head.

"I just n-needed to l-let you know."

"Thank you, Dawn. Be safe, and I am so sorry."

"Bye, Delia."

The screen went black. I placed my head in my hands and closed my eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

In Vermillion City...

A steady beeping sound filled a small hospital room with three beds. Two of the beds were occupied with two children; a girl and a boy. Both had wires attached to them. A groan was heard and then the sound of shifting from both of them.

Jason opened his eyes, his whole body aching.

"Where am I?" Michelle asked, sitting up with a headache pounding in her head.

Jason looked at Michelle and she looked back at him. The events of last night suddenly came rushing back to the two. They looked around and their eyes landed on the empty, unused bed. Adam wasn't in the room, and they both feared the worst.

"No..." Michelle said, tears forming in her eyes.

"No...Arceus, please don't let this be true." Jason muttered.

"Eevee!" Michelle cried suddenly. She looked along the floor and didn't see her beloved Pokemon.

"No...they didn't make it."

Michelle had a few tears falling from her eyes and Jason had his hands in fists, unable to believe it.

The wooden door to their room suddenly swung open, startling the two. A doctor entered who was fairly young. He carried a clipboard. His blonde hair was slicked back and his blue eyes looked at the two.

"Well, it's good to see that you two woke up." he said, walking over to Jason's bed. He checked Jason's monitor and then walked to Michelle's monitor.

"How do you two feel?" he asked.

"Sore and stiff." Jason grumbled.

"Sore and a headache." Michelle said softly.

The doctor scribbled down what the two had said. "Your bodies were in a state of extreme exhaustion when you were first brought in. That's why you both feel sore. Michelle, you have a headache because you suffered some cranial trauma, probably from hitting your head on something."

"Where's Adam?" they asked.

"Adam's fine. He's still in the recovery room. His injuries were more severe than yours. You two only had minor injuries." the doctor said. "Oh yes, and your Pokemon are in the Pokemon Center recovering, too."

Jason and Michelle released a huge sigh of relief knowing Adam was alive and their Pokemon were, too.

* * *

><p><strong>Dawn's POV<strong>

I had just finished brushing my hair and washing my tear-stained face when I heard the video phone. I walked to the phone and answered it.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Is this Dawn Ketchum?" a voice asked.

"Yes, who is asking?" No one appeared on the screen so I realized this person wasn't on a video phone.

"Doctor Queen's assistant, Bethany, from the Vermillion City Hospital."

"Okay,"

"I'm calling to tell you that..." I heard the shuffle of papers. "Your son, Adam Ketchum, is alive."

If I had been holding something at that moment, I would've dropped it. "He's alive?!"

"Yes,"

"Thank you!"

"Goodbye,"

The call was ended.

"Thank you, Arceus." I said. I left for Vermillion City immediately. I had to see Adam for myself.

* * *

><p><strong>Leaf's POV<strong>

I sat in kitchen drinking some hot tea. Gary had gone to the lab to deal with the news in his own way. I, on the other hand, couldn't do anything.

The phone rang and I grabbed my cup and went to answer it.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Yes, is this Leaf Oak?"

"Yes, this is her."

"I'm Doctor Queen's assistant, Bethany, from the Vermillion City Hospital."

"Continue..."

"I'm calling to tell you that your son Jake - sorry, Jason, is alive."

I dropped the cup of tea and it shattered on the floor. I jumped back as the hot tea hit my barefoot.

"Thank you so much!"

"Goodbye,"

The phone call ended and I dashed out of the house and towards the lab. I had to tell Gary in person right away! I arrived at the lab in record time and ran inside, earning some looks from the two assistants.

"Gary!" I cried as I entered.

Gary was at the back of the lab looking at some papers. "Leaf? What are you doing here?" he asked.

"It's Jason. The hospital called just now. He's alive! HE'S ALIVE!" I yelled happily.

Gary looked at the ceiling, silently thanking Arceus. He stood up and hugged me. "Thank goodness." he muttered.

We just stood there for a few minutes in each others' arms as tears of joy ran down our faces. I hadn't felt this happy or relieved since the day Gary and I got married.

* * *

><p><strong>Misty's POV<strong>

I had closed the gym for a while after receiving the news. My daughter was gone, and only ten years old. I sat on the couch looking at the last picture that had been taken of Michelle and I. I hadn't felt this sad since the day my husband divorced me and left me with Michelle...and now, just like him, she was gone, too. Forever. I was all alone now, just like Dawn.

The video phone started ringing. I jumped and rolled the chair to the phone.

"Hello?"

"Misty Waterflower?"

"Yes?"

"I'm Doctor Queen's assistant, Bethany, from the Vermillion City Hospital."

"Okay...?"

"I'm calling to let you know your daughter, Michelle, is alive."

I silently thanked Arceus. "Thank you,"

"Goodbye,"

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

It was now two days since the sinking of the S.S. Ketchum had taken place. Michelle woke up as the sun came into the room and she looked towards the bed. It was still empty. Adam was still in recovery. She sighed and Jason sat up and looked.

"Still not here..." he muttered.

After finishing their breakfasts, the door opened to reveal the doctor. He held the door open and a nurse walked in. Adam entered the room with the help of another nurse.

Adam was put into the last bed as he laid his head on the pillow and looked at his two friends. "Good to see that you two are okay." Adam said.

"Us? What about you?! You were in the worst condition!" Michelle cried.

"Good to see you're okay." Jason said, ignoring her outburst.

"Yeah, it's good to see that you're okay, Adam." Michelle said, calmly this time. "I...I was really worried about you..."

The door was about to close, but two blurs entered quickly. One was a yellow blur and the other was a brown blur. Pikachu and Eevee jumped onto their trainers' beds.

"Pikachu!" Adam cried.

"Eevee!" Michelle cried, scooping her Pokemon in her arms and holding her.

The doctor smiled at the scene. "You know, you three are very lucky to be alive and in the shape you're in."

"By the way, how did we end up back on dry land, anyway?" asked Jason.

"Nobody knows." the doctor replied. "You were found that night by someone who was walking along the beach and your bodies had been washed up onshore. That's when he called us for an ambulance." Then the doctor left the room.

"Do either one of you remember what happened or how we got knocked out?" Michelle asked.

"All I remember was hearing a loud bang." Jason replied.

"Yeah, I heard it, too. Then everything went black." Adam said.

After a minute, something came to Jason's mind. "There's something about that story the doctor just told us that doesn't fit."

"What's that?" Adam asked his friend.

"We were so far out at sea when the ship sank, so we couldn't have just washed up onshore only a few hours after the sinking."

"You're right, that's a good point. So that means the only way we could've gotten back here is if someone found us in the water and brought us back."

"But if someone did find us, why did they just leave us on the beach and not take us to a hospital?" Michelle asked.

"If they brought us here, the doctors would've seen who saved us. Maybe they didn't want to be found out?"

A knock came on the door that interrupted the conversation and a small group of people walked in.

"We've collected items from the wreckage. Anything belonging to you, take it."

A box was placed on each of their beds and they looked through the things. Michelle grabbed her bag that was soaked and placed it beside her.

"Please make sure that your things are there."

She looked through and nodded. Jason removed his bag and checked for his things. Adam then found his bag and checked for his things.

Adam and Jason found their belts with their Pokeballs and Michelle found her bracelet and attached it to her wrist. All of their Pokemon were still there.

"Thank you," the three said.

The small group then left the room.

"Do you think anyone else survived?" Michelle asked.

"I heard a nurse talking while I was in recovery. She said it was a massacre. Only three people lived and nearly all the Pokemon died." Adam said.

"We're lucky to be alive." Jason muttered.

The other two nodded their heads.

Later that day, the three had just finished their lunch when there was a knock on the door.

"You three have visitors." a nurse said.

The three nodded their heads and the door closed for a moment before it opened again. Misty walked in, followed by Leaf, Dawn, and then Gary. The parents walked to their beds and hugged their children.

"Are you alright?" Misty asked, looking at Michelle.

"Yeah, just sore and I have a headache." she replied.

Misty hugged her daughter again.

"You okay?" Leaf asked. "They told us at first that you had all died."

"Yeah, I'm just sore all over." Jason replied.

Gary remained quiet and just smiled at his boy.

"Are you alright?" Dawn asked her son.

"Yeah," Adam replied as Dawn hugged him.

"Thank Arceus you're okay."

The parents sat down in the chairs that were in the room. Michelle finally seemed to realize that her idol was in the room with her in person. She knew it was her by the way her eyes sparkled.

"So you're the famous Michelle?" Dawn asked, looking at Michelle.

"Yes, Mrs. K- uh, Dawn." Michelle said. "We've seen each other on the phone a few times."

"It's great to finally talk to you in person, but a shame under these conditions."

"Yeah,"

"Well, I've been watching your contests and I have to say that you're off to a great start. I know you'll be a Top Coordinator someday!"

"Thank you so much! That means a lot coming from you."

"So Jason, this is the Michelle that Dawn was telling us about?" Gary asked.

Jason nodded his head.

"Well Michelle, I'm Professor Gary Oak." Gary greeted.

"I'm Leaf Oak," Leaf greeted.

"Nice to meet you both." Michelle said.

After a little more chitchat, the parents left the room, saying that they were staying the night and leaving when the three of them were released.

**Dawn's POV**

I walked to the phones to make two phone calls again. I dialed Delia's number and waited. On the second ring, the phone was picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Delia."

"Hello, Dawn."

Delia looked so sad, but I was smiling.

"Well, you look very happy." Delia stated.

I laughed and shook my head. "It's because Adam's alive! He and his friends are all okay and are in the Vermillion City Hospital."

"Well, that's wonderful news! Please tell Adam that I love him and he'd better stop being so reckless like his father."

"I will, and you know Adam won't stop being reckless. He's just like Ash."

"I know, but I love them both."

"Me too. Well Delia, I have to go."

"Okay,"

The call was ended and the screen went black. I then dialed my mom's number and waited. On the third ring, the call was answered.

"Hi, Dawn."

"Hey, mom."

My mom looked confused by my smile.

"Dawn?"

"Adam's alive!" I cried.

"What?! That's wonderful! Thank Arceus he's alive! Are his friends okay?"

"Yes, all of them are fine."

My mom's face suddenly filled with concern. "Dawn, I want to ask you something."

"What?" I asked, confused.

"Dawn, you've been very emotional and under a lot of stress lately. I mean, with Ash's disappearance, people thinking he's dead, and Adam nearly dying. I want to know if I could come and stay with you. I want to be there for you, and to help you. Just until Ash returns home."

"Of course, mom. That would mean a lot to me."

"Thank you, dear."

"Well, I just wanted to call and tell you the news. I'll be heading home after the kids get released from the hospital. You can come to Pallet Town as soon as you want, and I'll meet you there when I get back. I love you."

"Love you too, Dawn."

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

"Good news!" the doctor cried as he entered the room the next day.

The three stopped talking suddenly and waited.

"You three are free to leave and go back on your journey again!"

"Awesome!" they all cheered.

The three changed back into their journey clothes, which had dried along with their other things, and waited in the lobby with their parents and Pokemon.

"Please be careful." they said.

"We will," the three replied.

They said goodbye to their parents and left the hospital.

"It's so great to be outside again!" Michelle cried happily.

Adam and Jason nodded their heads. Being trapped in the hospital wasn't fun.

"Next stop is Celadon City!" Adam declared.

**Author's Note: And so, Adam and the others are rescued and ready to get back on their journey. Next stop is Celadon City where the next gym and contest is! And for those of you who have been saying that Ash will show up, for the hundredth time, he's DEAD!**

**Be sure to keep reading! Because next time, an old friend will be making a reappearance! Any guesses on who it is?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	19. Butterfree's Goodbye

**Author's Note: We will no longer be accepting anonymous reviews for this story, since we can't reply to them. If you want to leave a review, make an account on the site. It's quick and easy.**

**Normal POV**

"Welcome back, Darien." his father said as he entered his room. "I trust everything went according to plan?"

"The S.S. Ketchum sank completely, father. The Gyarados killed every person and Pokemon who were floating in the water." Darien replied.

"Then perhaps you've not yet heard. There were three survivors, and their Pokemon, too."

"What?! Impossible!" he cried.

"Luckily for you, they were the three children who we need captured. If they had died, you would've suffered all of the blame."

"We're also in no danger of being exposed, since they don't know about our plans...But something is very troubling."

"What might that be?" asked the Team Rocket leader.

"I saw the radar on the sub right before we attacked. There were no other ships in the area. Someone's boat must've been hiding just out of range. Not to mention the fact that they were able to rescue the three kids and make it back to shore hours before rescue ships came to the scene."

"Then that can only mean one thing," he said with a troubled look on his face, "That person who saved them followed the S.S. Ketchum because they knew what we were going to do!"

"They knew we were going to sink the ship and were racing to stop us?" Darien couldn't believe his ears. "Then that means only one thing."

"Yes. We have a traitor in our organization. One of our own Team Rocket members is plotting against us. I want them found. Now."

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

We walked along the road and then we came to a cliff looking over the sea.

"Um, did we go the wrong way? We've bypassed Saffron City again!" Michelle said as she glanced over the edge.

"Nope, I know exactly where we're going." I said confidently.

"Yeah, your dad used to say that all the time when he traveled with my mom." Michelle said, not believing me. "And they constantly got lost because of him!"

"Just roll with me. You'll be glad you did."

"That's a long way down." Jason said, stepping back a few steps.

I glanced down at the sea. The water was calm except for below us as it hit the side of the cliff and the rocks. It was a long way down.

"We get up on that ridge and we'll be on our way to Celadon City." Jason said, pointing.

"Hey, what's that?" Michelle asked, pointing towards the sky.

I look up and Jason did too. "It looks like hot air balloons." Jason said.

"Yes, and a bunch of Pokemon. Butterfree, to be exact." I said.

"What are they doing here?"

I racked my brain and thought of all the stories my dad had told me. "It's the Butterfree mating season." I said.

"Free!"

"Pi?" Pikachu said, looking towards the sky.

A Butterfree with a faded orange scarf fluttered in the sky in front of me. It looked very happy to see me, and I wondered why. But then it moved back and stared at me for a second. Then a disappointed look came on its face.

"Free..." it said sadly, flying away.

"What was that about?" Michelle wondered.

"I think that Butterfree mistook Adam for someone else." Jason answered.

"Pika! Pika!" Pikachu cried.

The Butterfree stopped and flew back over. "Free! Free?"

Pikachu hopped down from my shoulder and began talking to the Butterfree. "Pika...Pikachu. Chu...Pi."

"Free! Free!"

I then realized that this Butterfree was the one my dad had released so it could find a mate. It must've returned to make sure no one tries to harm and interrupt the mating season like Team Rocket did when my dad traveled.

"You're right, Jason!" I said. "This is my dad's old Butterfree. He did mistake me. He thought I was my dad."

"But it seems that Pikachu cleared up any confusion." said Michelle.

"Jason, are you going to let your Butterfree find a mate?" I asked, looking at him.

He removed his Pokeball from his belt. "It's only fair. And there are a lot of Butterfree around, so I know he'll find one." he said, tossing his Pokeball.

"Butterfree!" Butterfree cried, fluttering in the sky.

"Hey, Butterfree! It's time for you to find a mate." Jason said.

Butterfree looked towards the sky and saw all of the Butterfree that were around.

"Hey, we need to get a balloon so we can see." Michelle said.

"Yeah, we do, don't we?" I asked.

Jason's Butterfree and my dad's Butterfree followed us as we headed towards where Michelle had seen the balloons.

"We're in luck! There's still a few left!" she cried.

We paid the cost for renting the hot air balloon and climbed in. We were in a hot pink balloon.

"Wow, I've never seen so many of one Pokemon in one place before." Michelle said in amazement. "It's beautiful."

There were so many Butterfree flying in the sky. Some were flying in pairs while others were flying solo.

"Alright, Butterfree. Go get 'em!" Jason said.

Butterfree flew towards the group of Pokemon in the sky. He flew towards a few Butterfree only to have them fly away.

"Why does Butterfree keep flying from one to another?" Michelle asked.

"Just like humans, Pokemon have types that they like. My dad told me that." Jason said, watching his Butterfree.

I leaned on the back of the balloon, being careful not to fall, and remembered when my dad had told me this story.

_I was laying on the couch watching one of his battles. His final battle in the Orange Islands, to be exact._

_"Dad, what happened to your Lapras?" I asked, noticing the Lapras was not around now._

_"I released Lapras so she could be with her family. She was lost when I found her, and while we traveled, we came across the family."_

_"Have you released any other Pokemon so they could be with family or anything?"_

_"Yes, I released my Butterfree, which I evolved all the way from a Caterpie. It was my very first Pokemon after Pikachu."_

_"Why did you release Butterfree?"_

_My dad paused the battle I was watching. "Just like humans, Pokemon have a chance to find true love. When I was traveling, I came to the place where Butterfree mate."_

_"So you released your Butterfree so it could have chance at love?"_

_"Yes, Butterfree got rejected a few times, but after saving all of the Butterfree from Team Rocket, the Butterfree he fell for accepted him."_

I glanced back up and couldn't find Butterfree.

"Where's Butterfree?" I asked.

Jason glanced at me and frowned. "Butterfree flew quicker than I thought and I lost track."

Suddenly, Butterfree flew towards us and stopped. "Free! Free!" it cried.

"Did Butterfree find a mate?" Michelle asked.

"Did you find a Butterfree that you like?" Jason asked.

"Free!"

"Brock came up with an idea to put a orange scarf around Butterfree's neck. He thought that would help Butterfree gain the attention of the Butterfree he liked, it also helped us know which Butterfree was mine."

Butterfree turned around to fly away, but faltered.

"Free..." it said sadly.

I glanced to where Butterfree was facing and saw two Butterfree doing a dance. "Oh no..." I muttered.

"Butterfree just got it's heart broken." I said.

Jason looked and frowned. "Butterfree...I'm sorry." he said.

"Butterfree, don't let that get you down. There are plenty other Butterfree out there!" Michelle cried, staying optimistic.

Butterfree flew towards the other Butterfree to try again.

"Hey, look that that Butterfree." Michelle said, pointing.

I glanced to where she was pointing to find a Butterfree flying with its wings glowing.

"That's Silver Wind." Jason said.

"That looks like a contest move. Maybe its trainer is a coordinator, like me." Michelle said.

The Butterfree flew towards Jason's Butterfree. The sparkling Butterfree started to dance and soon Jason's Butterfree was dancing.

"Butterfree found a partner." Michelle said.

"Butterfree!" Jason and another voice yelled simultaneously.

The two Butterfree stopped and flew towards their trainers.

"That green hot air balloon is landing." Michelle noted.

"Then that's the other Butterfree's trainer. Should we go and meet them?" I asked.

"Yeah," Jason said.

We landed our balloon and headed towards the other balloon.

"Free!" Butterfree cried, flying off.

"Butterfree!" Jason cried, chasing his Pokemon.

"Jason!" Michelle and I called, running after him.

"You must be the other Butterfree's trainer?" a girl asked as Michelle and I stumbled to a stop.

"Yeah, I am. You must be the other one?" Jason replied, looking at the Butterfree.

"I am. The name's Blair," the girl said.

"I'm Jason and these are my friends, Michelle, and Adam."

Blair had blonde hair pulled into a bun and silver eyes and she was pale. She looked to be a few years older than us, probably in her mid-teens. She wore black track pants, a pink tank top, and sneakers.

"I'm glad my Butterfree found a mate." Blair said.

"Yeah, me too." Jason said.

"Tonight is the day they leave. They'll leave and fly across the ocean to lay their eggs."

Blair and her Butterfree left after a few minutes and Jason looked at his Butterfree.

**Jason's POV**

I glanced back at Adam and Michelle.

"I'm gonna go to the cliff. Wanna come, Michelle?" Adam asked. "I think Jason and Butterfree need some time alone."

"Yeah, we'll catch you later, Jason." Michelle said.

"Okay,"

They walked back the way we had come. Butterfree flew onto my shoulder.

"Butterfree, this is our last day together." I muttered.

"Free?"

I sighed and shook my head. "Butterfree, I'll never forget you. You were my first Bug Pokemon and my first fully evolved Pokemon that I ever caught." I knew I would have to say goodbye tonight. Boy, was this going to be fun.

I stood on the cliff in the middle of Adam and Michelle. Butterfree was on my shoulder. A lot of trainers were in the air in balloons or at the cliff's edges with their Butterfree out. I spotted the green balloon so Blair and her Butterfree were in the air.

Butterfree started flying into the sky. "Free, Free!"

I held Butterfree's Pokeball in my hand. I wasn't sure how to release Butterfree.

Many Butterfree were in the sky now. I noticed that Blair's Butterfree had flew and was flying in the sky, looking towards us.

"Butterfree, it's time for us to say goodbye. I want you to be happy. Go." I said as I held up the Pokeball.

I returned Butterfree and then when I released Butterfree, Butterfree came out in a blue light.

"Free?"

"Go on."

Butterfree started towards the sky, but stopped. Butterfree looked at me with a sad expression.

"This isn't a permanent goodbye, Butterfree. We will meet again one day, I know it." I said.

Butterfree flew towards the others and was joined by Blair's Butterfree.

"Bye Butterfree!" Michelle and Adam cried as Ash's Butterfree flew off as well, following them.

"Goodbye, Butterfree. I'll never forget you." I said watching as all the Butterfree flew off. Tears came to my eyes.

"You showed a lot of strength by letting Butterfree go like that, because you valued Butterfree's happiness above your own." said Michelle.

"And just like you said, you'll see each other again, just as I will with my dad." Adam added.

* * *

><p>The next morning, we continued onwards to Celadon City. After a few hours, we heard sounds of battling in the forest nearby. As the three of us headed to the place where the noise was coming from, we saw a man training his Pokemon, who looked very powerful. I didn't know who he was, but something about him seemed familiar to Adam.<p>

**Author's Note: And so, with a heavy heart, Jason says goodbye to Butterfree.**

**Team Rocket, meanwhile, has figured out that there is a traitor in their ranks. Who could it be?**

**And who is this mysterious person that only Adam seems to recognize? If you have a guess, let us know in a review.**

**The identity will be revealed next time on Pokemon NG!**


	20. A Crushing Defeat

The man had his back facing us, but I knew I had seen this man before. Had I seen him as a kid? Suddenly, the man's Ursaring was returned and he turned around.

"What do you want?" he asked coldly.

I stared at the man and realized where I knew him from. He was my dad's most hated rival, Paul. Paul's purple hair fell to his shoulders his bangs in his onyx eyes which were looking at us coldly, waiting for us to say something. He wore black jeans, a gray jacket, and black and gray sneakers.

His eyes stayed looking at me for a while and he smirked. "So you're the pathetic excuse of a Pokemon Master's son..." he muttered.

I flinched and I was going to become angry very soon. "What are you doing here, Paul? You don't travel anymore." I asked bitterly.

"Oh, so you do know me. I'm here because Ash is dead. I heard about the League's offer of the title of Pokemon Master being given to another trainer, and I intend to get it. He's pathetic, worthless, and stupid. Someone like him doesn't deserve to be the Pokemon Master. He never won against me, except for once in the Sinnoh League, but that was just pure luck and he paid for it against Tobias. I bet you're just like him, a pathetic excuse for a trainer." Paul said, looking at me coldly and with an amused smirk.

Something snapped inside me and I lost it. "I challenge you to a battle!" I cried, enraged. Sure, I was getting use to being called "pathetic" and "weak", since Trevor usually called me that. But with Paul insulting my dad...that was a whole different story. Plus, he doesn't even know me and what I can do, and he's calling me weak, too?

Paul looked amused now. "Fine. Be prepared to lose, just like your father." Paul said.

"Three on three!" I cried.

"I'll be the ref." Jason said, running to the middle of the field.

"Bulbasaur, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Honchkrow, stand by for battle." Paul said, tossing his Pokeball.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur cried, landing.

"Honchkrow!" Honchkrow cried, flying in the air.

"Begin!" Jason cried.

"Honchkrow, use Wing Attack."

"Dodge!" I cried.

Honchkrow came towards Bulbasaur and Bulbasaur managed to dodge in time. What I didn't realize was that Honchkrow was coming back from behind, going for another pass, and it hit Bulbasaur.

"Bulba! Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur cried out in pain. Bulbasaur weakly stood up, covered in bruises and breathing heavily from just one attack. Paul sure had some high level Pokemon!

"Finish this with Night Slash." Paul commanded.

"Bulbasaur!" I cried.

Bulbasaur was hit and was sent flying backwards. "Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur lay on the ground, fainted.

Jason was at a loss for words and couldn't say anything. Michelle looked shocked and scared at what had happened.

"Take a well deserved rest." I said, returning my partner.

Paul silently returned his Honchkrow even though it had taken no damage.

"Magmortar, stand by for battle." Paul said, tossing his Pokeball.

"Mag...mortar!" Magmortar cried.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried, his cheeks sparking with electricity. I remembered my dad telling me that Pikachu was defeated by Magmortar once after they had trained so hard to win, and it still wasn't enough. Paul was so ruthless, that Pikachu was tossed into the lake. Pikachu was the strongest Pokemon in my group, so I knew I had to give it everything.

"Pikachu, let's show 'em." I said as Pikachu jumped from my shoulder.

"Pika!"

"Oh, you even have his Pikachu. Not going to help you any." Paul said.

"Pikachu, use Volt Tackle!" I cried.

"Magmortar, use Rock Tomb." Paul said.

"Agility while still using Volt Tackle!" I cried. Volt Tackle on its own was kinda slow, but by combining it with a speed attack, it would be a lot stronger! Pikachu easily avoided the rocks and slammed into Magmortar.

"Fire Punch." Pikachu was hit by Magmortar and flew backwards. Pikachu shook himself off and was still staying strong.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried as a flame covered his body.

"What?!" I cried. Pikachu was burned!

"What are the odds? Same thing happened the last time when these two faced against each other at Lake Acuity." Paul said. My dad had told me that story a few times.

"Adam, that's Flame Body, Magmortar's special ability." Jason said.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt."

"Flamethrower."

The two moves fought for dominance before canceling each other out.

"Fire Spin."

"Counter!"

Pikachu went to jump, but was stopped by the burn.

"No! Pikachu!" I cried. Pikachu was hit by the Fire Spin. Pikachu stood up covered in burn marks and breathing unevenly.

"Finish this, Magmortar. Use Rock-" Paul started to say.

Pikachu cried out as the burn took affect. When it stopped, Pikachu looked at me sadly.

"Chu..." It almost seemed like Pikachu was saying, "I'm sorry...I can't go on...I tried." Pikachu fell to the ground fainted. I walked onto the field and picked up Pikachu.

"Chu..."

"It's okay, you did good. Rest now." I said, handing Pikachu to Michelle, since she had some potions.

I sighed and removed Charmander's Pokeball. "Charmander, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Char! Char!" Charmander cried.

Paul returned Magmortar and said, "Torterra, stand by for battle."

"Torterra!" Torterra cried.

He had deliberately chosen a Grass Pokemon against my Fire Pokemon? I knew Paul wasn't stupid, so he must've been very confident.

"Use Giga Drain."

"Dodge!"

Charmander managed to dodge.

"Flamethrower!" The flames shot towards Torterra and hit him in the face doing little, if any, damage.

"Hyper Beam."

As Torterra charged the attack, I thought of a counter move.

"Smokescreen!" Charmander quickly covered himself with smoke and the Hyper Beam was launched. I waited and I heard Charmander cry out. When the smoke cleared, Charmander was on the ground, struggling to get up. The Smokescreen hadn't helped to hide him at all. Paul still managed to know where he was.

"Char...Charmander!" Charmander cried.

Suddenly, his body began to glow white. Charmander's body changed and when the light vanished, Charmander no longer stood there, it was Charmeleon! He had evolved just in time. Maybe I could turn this around now!

"Charmeleon, use Flamethrower!" I didn't want to try any close range attacks since Torterra knew Crunch, as my dad had told me.

"Use Frenzy Plant to finish this." The Flamethrower had no affect on the thick vines as the Frenzy Plant came. Charmeleon was hit and fainted.

"Congrats on evolving, take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

Paul returned his Torterra without a word. He walked halfway across the field we had used. "Adam, you're just as pathetic as your father was." he said as he turned and left.

I stared at his retreating form and my anger got the best of me. I was so angry and frustrated that tears started falling. Dad's reputation was on the line, and I couldn't do anything! He can't lose his title to...to the likes of him! He'd never make a good Pokemon Master! I so badly wished I had a sign of where my dad was. I needed to find him now...

"Adam..." Jason trailed uncertainly.

I couldn't look at my friends. I was crying way too much on my journey. I was frustrated with the loss, as well as angry.

"Adam, what he said wasn't true. You're an awesome trainer. I mean, you've beaten me, you beat those Gym Leaders, you're not pathetic. You're a great friend and rival and you're doing your dad proud. Don't listen to Paul, he's an idiot. Like your dad told us, 'You'll meet people when traveling...you'll learn who to trust and who to believe. Many will say things to discourage you, but never believe it. I learned that the hard way, but if you're with people who support you...the negativity will not get you down.' Do you remember that?" Jason asked.

I glanced up and nodded my head. "I remember that. I'll never forget that." My dad had told us that a week before he vanished, since our journey would soon be starting. I was becoming a little better, but what Paul said still echoed in my head.

I felt arms around me and I was brought back to reality. Michelle was hugging me and I immediately hugged her back. She always seemed to hug me whenever I was feeling sad...and I liked it. It was sweet of her and it always calmed me down.

"Don't let him get you down, Adam. You're the best and don't you forget it. He needs to have respect and kindness to be a good trainer, and he clearly lacks it. You don't lack those and neither does your dad." she said.

"Just ignore him. That guy is someone who pries on others' flaws and hides behind his own. He hides his flaws and makes himself feel better by putting down others. My mom told me that a lot of times when I was younger." Jason added. "Your dad will return. We're going to find him."

I nodded my head and wiped the tears from my face as I let Michelle go. "Thank you both. I don't know what I would do if you weren't here." I said, looking at them.

I looked up at the sky and thought, _Dad, wherever you are, we really need you back soon._

Then I looked at Jason and Michelle and boldly said, "From now on, I swear you'll never see me cry again until the day we find my dad! Because on that day, I'll be crying tears of joy!" I was done with wasting my time with sadness and tears. Nothing would ever get me down again. I was ready to move on past what people were saying about my dad and I, and follow my heart!

Smiles spread across Jason and Michelle's faces as they heard my words, and they surrounded me as we hugged each other in a group hug.

"Now that's what I wanted to hear!" Jason exclaimed.

"Yeah, that's the Adam we know and love!" Michelle added happily.

But we were so caught up in the moment, that we didn't hear the sound of jet engines passing us overhead above the clouds, heading in the same direction we were...but we'd find out about it VERY soon.

**Author's Note: So the kids meet Paul, who's still as mean as ever. Back on the road and training, he's hoping to become the new Pokemon Master in Ash's place. Fighting for the honor of his father, Adam battled Paul. His Charmander evolved, but it all came to nothing. Adam was completely outmatched and utterly destroyed in the battle.**

**It was the worst Adam had ever felt in his life, but as always, his friends were there to keep him going. And now, a stronger-minded and stronger-willed Adam Ketchum is ready to face ANY challenge in the future without any fear whatsoever! Nothing will ever break his spirit again!**

**But Adam's courage and determination will be put to its toughest test yet in next chapter! What will happen to him?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	21. A Daring Rescue, A Brush With Death!

We walked along a rocky path. The walls on either side of us went pretty high and rocks were along the edges. I knew that this is where my dad had an interesting encounter with one of his Pokemon. Primeape, to be exact.

My dad met the Pokemon when it was still a Mankey and it had stolen his hat. After some time of chasing it, the Mankey evolved into Primeape. My dad was able to get his hat back and he also caught Primeape.

After a little while, I heard started hearing some voices. "Do you guys hear that?" I asked.

"Yeah, it sounds like people are talking." Michelle said.

"Let's go see." said Jason.

We walked to the ridge and looked down. There was a truck that had six wheels and was black with a red "R" on it, and three people looking around the truck with Team Rocket uniforms on.

"They're Team Rocket, but what's with the truck?" Michelle asked quietly.

"That truck...it triggers a memory of something my dad told me." I said.

_"Hunter J. She always traveled on a Salamence and had a ship and trucks. I had quite a few encounters with her while in Sinnoh."_

"Those are grunts and they're working for a Pokemon Hunter." I said.

"How did you figure that?" Jason asked.

"I just remembered a line from a story my dad told me. We have to move, now! They're looking for Pokemon to capture for the hunter."

"We're not about to let that happen!" Michelle said.

We jumped up and slid down to where the three grunts were.

"Oh, look. It's some brats." one of the grunts said, causing the other two to face us.

"We can't have three brats messing up our plans. Nidoran, take care of these brats!" the only girl grunt cried, tossing a Pokeball.

"Golbat, go!"

"Venonat, go!"

"Nido!" Nidoran, cried landing. The Nidoran was blue, meaning it was a girl.

"Golbat!" Golbat cried flapping in the air.

"Veno!" Venonat cried.

"Showtime, Growlithe!" Michelle cried.

"Charmeleon, lets show 'em!" I cried.

"Charmeleon, go!" Jason cried.

"Growl!" Growlithe cried.

"Char! Charmeleon!" both cried.

"A Fire trio. Oh, how cute." the girl grunt said mockingly.

"Flamethrower!" Michelle cried.

"Fire Fang!" Jason cried.

"Flamethrower!" I cried.

All three moves hit the targets, the Flamethrowers hit Nidoran and Venonat while Fire Fang got Golbat.

"Use Toxic Spikes, Nidoran!" The spikes landed on the ground making it difficult for both sides to move.

"Use Swift, Golbat!"

"Growlithe, counter with Bite!" Michelle cried.

"Slash the stars with Metal Claw!" I cried.

"Flamethrower!" Jason cried.

Our attacks successfully caused Swift to not even touch our Pokemon. We were battling in perfect sync!

"Venonat, use Psychic!"

Venonat lifted our Pokemon into the air. Both Charmeleons were slammed into each other and then Growlithe was slammed into the ground, causing dust to stir up.

When the dust settled, our Pokemon were getting up and were still okay. I looked at Team Rocket's Pokemon, which were breathing heavily.

"Time to end this! Charmeleon, Smoke Screen!" I cried. Smoke covered the area.

"Flamethrower!" Michelle cried.

"Fire Fang!" Jason cried.

Our Pokemon attacked and they all hit their marks!

"No!" the Grunts yelled.

The smoke cleared and our Pokemon stood while Team Rocket's Pokemon had fainted.

"These brats beat us!" the girl cried, returning her Pokemon.

"Uh oh..." Michelle said, looking up. "Here come reinforcements!"

Three more trucks pulled up and flying in the sky was a Dragonite with the Pokemon Hunter standing on it. The Pokemon Hunter was bald and he was bulky...strong. He wore a long black coat over a red jumpsuit and I spotted the cannon strapped to his arm. Those cannons caused so much trouble. Innocent Pokemon could be frozen to stone...sometimes humans, too.

"Hunter Oliver!" one of the grunts cried.

So he was Pokemon Hunter Oliver. His dark eyes scanned the area and saw our Pokemon and us.

"Distract their Pokemon so I can shoot them." he said darkly.

"Return!" we cried and ran, knowing that we couldn't take all of them on at once.

We were running for a while but Michelle tripped and fell, with us not knowing.

"Eevee! No!" Michelle cried.

I stopped and turned around. Michelle was far behind us and Eevee was turned to stone. We had unknowingly left Michelle behind. Oliver then stood over a terrified Michelle, smirked, and shot her, turning her to stone.

"No!" I cried, starting to run back.

"No!" Jason cried, grabbing my arm and holding me back. "We can't go back! We go back, and we'll be captured, too! We can't save her if we get captured! We have to run! We can help her only by staying free ourselves!" he cried.

I sighed and we ran from where Michelle and Eevee were. We finally lost Team Rocket and were catching our breath as we hid behind some boulders. After I caught my breath, I looked at Jason with anger.

"We could have saved her!" I yelled.

Jason looked back at me and saw my anger. Anger was visible in his eyes, too. "There wouldn't have been enough time, Adam!" he yelled back.

I tried to calm down, but couldn't. "We have to find her, and fast! We have to find her before something bad happens!"

"How do you expect us to do that? Huh, Adam?! How?! We don't even know where she is or where they've taken her!"

"I...we..." He had me there.

"We need a plan. We can't just go charging in blindly! We're outnumbered and we would just get caught, too! Think for once."

He had lowered his voice at the last sentence, but I still heard it. He probably didn't think I heard him, but I did. I didn't speak to him. Instead, I was thinking.

"Jason?" I spoke, after thinking for a few minutes.

"Yes?" Judging by his voice, he was either calming down or he was still angry and the anger was turning to annoyance.

"Can you drive a truck?"

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

A huge black ship was resting on the ground. It was identical to the one that the late Pokemon Hunter J used. Inside one of the rooms was Michelle, Eevee, and two more Pokemon who had been captured earlier by Oliver. Michelle was in a glass dome, still as stone like the other two Pokemon, while Eevee was in a cage and not stone anymore.

The door opened and Hunter Oliver walked in with a Raichu by his side. He walked over to where Michelle was and slid the lever down on Michelle's dome, only enough so she could move her head.

Michelle looked at Hunter Oliver and tried to move, only to find that she couldn't. She looked down to see that she was frozen like a stone statue.

"W-What did y-y-you do t-t-t-to me?" she asked in a terrified voice.

"You are just stone, child. Nothing to worry about."

She then looked for Eevee and found Eevee in front of her in the cage, not as stone. "Eevee! Why is she in a cage?" Michelle asked.

"Full of questions, aren't you? Listen here, child. You are going to be a good little girl and answer all of the questions that I'm going to ask."

Michelle laughed rudely. "Ha! Like I would ever tell you anything."

"Raichu, if you would."

Raichu used Thunder on Eevee, who cried out in pain.

"Eevee!" Michelle cried. She glared at Hunter Oliver.

"If you don't cooperate...Raichu will use Thunder on your precious Eevee again. Oh, and if your precious Eevee 'accidentally' dies from the torture, Raichu will be using its Thunder on you instead! So I would watch your mouth if I were you, child."

Michelle paled and looked at the hunter with fear visible in her eyes.

_He's sick! He's cruel, too! Would he really hurt me? _she thought.

He had a thoughtful expression on his face.

"You know what? I think I'll let you experience what would happen and what your precious Eevee just went through." he said, smirking.

Michelle paled and she watched as her body slowly went back to normal. He stopped at her feet and Michelle was scared.

_No...no...no, he wouldn't..._

"Raichu, get ready." he said.

_He's serious! No!_

He slowly lowered the lever even more and soon Michelle wasn't stone anymore. The glass dome disappeared, but even if Michelle wanted to, she couldn't run. The Thunder hit her quickly and she cried out in pain. Sparks still lingered on her body and she was turned back to stone again, minus her head.

"So, how did that feel?" he asked her. "You'd better get used to it, because you'll be feeling it a lot if you don't cooperate with me.

"Now, time for the questions. How many times have you and your friends encountered Team Rocket? What do you know of our plans? And do you know what the hat-wearing boy is searching for? Answer me or Eevee gets shocked again." Hunter Oliver asked.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

Jason and I walked and came across one of the trucks with two grunts looking around for us.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail on them to knock 'em out." I said. Pikachu ran out and used two quick Iron Tails and they were knocked out.

Jason and I ran out from behind the rocks and got into the truck. I took notice that the windows were mirrored and there was a G.P.S. There was a green dot that wasn't moving. That must've been their ship.

"There's the ship. Think you can get there?" I asked.

Jason looked at the steering wheel and the rest of the truck. "I can't do this, I don't know how." he said.

I quickly gave him a small run through of what I figured out and told him, "Figure the rest out as you go."

Soon we were zooming towards the green dot.

"Jason, slow down! We're close to the ship!" I cried.

The speed decreased quickly and he drove at a calmer and slower pace. We arrived where the ship had landed and many people were standing around, guarding it.

"Just keep going." I said. "As far as they're concerned, we're just another patrol unit."

Thankfully, our trick worked and we got into the ship without any problems. We got out of the truck and looked around.

"We'll split up and look for Michelle. It's a big ship and it'll be quicker. That okay?" I said.

"Well, it's good to see that you're using your head this time." Jason replied.

Jason went right and I decided to go straight. I walked through the halls, staying alert, should anyone see me. I was shocked that there weren't any grunts in the halls, patrolling. They must've all been outside guarding the ship or looking for Jason and I. I opened a few doors, hoping to find Michelle, but with no luck.

"I'll find her...even if I have to deal with that hunter all on my own." I muttered. My dad never abandoned his friends on his journey, and I wasn't going to do it to mine!

I opened the last door that was on the left to see Eevee in a cage. I opened the door more to see Michelle and two more Pokemon; a Machoke and a Graveler. I stepped in and the door closed rather loudly. Luckily, nobody came rushing in after me, so I assumed I was safe...for now.

Michelle's head was the only thing that wasn't stone. She looked towards me and her eyes widened. "Adam!" she cried happily.

I looked at the lever on Michelle's cage, knowing that's what kept her as stone. I glanced at Eevee's cage, which looked weak.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail to break the cage!" I cried.

I slid the lever down and the dome vanished, freeing Michelle. She tackled me into a hug, but when she hugged me she shocked me. It was like she had static electricity clinging to her body. What had happened to her?

"Thank you, Adam!" she cried.

I hugged her back. "You're welcome. I'm sorry I didn't notice that you had tripped and fallen." I said.

She stayed there, hugging me for a little while longer, but she broke away and scooped up Eevee, who was now free.

"Eevee, I'm so sorry!" she cried, hugging her Pokemon.

I looked at Eevee to see that she had a burn mark on her front paw. I then looked at Michelle and realized her hair was sticking up slightly. I would have to ask what had happened to them when we got out of here.

The door opened and we jumped back in alarm, but it was only Jason. He stepped into the room. "Now that we have Michelle, we can get out of here." he said.

We stepped towards the door, but an alarm started to go off. Jason pulled on the handle, but the door wouldn't open.

"It's locked!" he cried.

We were all trapped in this room. The loud roaring of the engines signaled we were beginning to go into the air.

"Ha ha ha! You fell right into my trap, boys. I was just using the girl as bait. Knowing that you would come to rescue her, I decided to catch you all in one fell swoop! Now you're all going to be taken to Team Rocket's base as prisoners! Oh, and don't bother trying to break down the door. It's attack-proof." Hunter Oliver's voice said from a hidden speaker in the room.

Michelle looked down. "This is all my fault." she muttered sadly.

"Don't worry, we'll get out of here." I said, placing my hand on her shoulder.

She looked up and nodded her head.

"The only way out is the window." Jason said. "But we're too high in the air to get out. The fall would kill us."

We sat on the floor. You could feel the sense of dread in the room.

"We're stuck between a rock and a hard place here." Michelle muttered. "We either live the rest of our lives as prisoners or choose to die and jump out of the ship."

"Which fate is worse?" Jason wondered aloud.

"No! Don't talk like that! We aren't trapped!" I cried, standing up. After losing my battle with Paul, I swore to myself I'd never lose hope or let my spirits get down.

I could get out of this, and I had a plan of how to do it! It would be dangerous, but it was our only shot! I tossed out Pidgey's Pokeball.

"Jason, call out Spearow. I have an idea." I said.

Jason released Spearow. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Pidgey and Spearow are too small to fly us out of here." Michelle said.

"I know, but that's not my plan. It's going to be risky and very dangerous. I'm not even sure myself if it'll work, but it's our only option. You guys are gonna have to trust me on this.

"Here's the plan: We'll break open the window and jump. While we're falling, Pidgey and Spearow will use Gust and Whirlwind together and create an updraft of air to cushion our fall." I explained.

"Are you sure they're even strong enough to pull it off?" Jason asked.

"Well, we're about to find out!" said Michelle. "We should take the Machoke and Graveler, too. Team Rocket are undoubtedly going to use them for their own selfish deeds."

Jason and I grabbed the two stone Pokemon in their glass domes. Pikachu jumped onto my shoulder as Eevee jumped onto Michelle's head. They held on tight as Pikachu used Thunderbolt to shatter the window...and we jumped!

We fell to the ground at breakneck speeds as Pidgey and Spearow used their attacks, but it wasn't enough. We were still falling too fast towards the ground.

"Give it more power!" Jason and I yelled.

The two Flying Pokemon began to speed up the attacks faster and faster, until suddenly, they started to glow. And in an instant, they had evolved into Fearow and Pidgeotto! With their newfound strength gained from evolving, they were able to give it more power and we landed safely on the ground.

"Good job, Pidgeotto." I said, returning Pidgeotto.

"Good job, Fearow." Jason said, returning Fearow.

Jason and I placed the two Pokemon on the ground and lowered the levers, changing them back and dissolving their glass domes.

"You're free to go now." we said to the two Pokemon.

But Machoke and Graveler refused to move, and they looked at us.

"I think they want to stay with you." Michelle noticed. "I guess it's a way to say thanks for saving them."

"Well Machoke, welcome to the team." I said, tapping a Pokeball against it.

"Welcome, Graveler." Jason said, doing the same.

The Pokeballs stopped wiggling and we had caught the two. I tossed Machoke and Pidgeotto back out and took out my Pokedex.

"Good idea." Jason said, doing the same to his new Pokemon.

"Pidgeotto, the evolved form of Pidgey. It is armed with sharp claws and dives from the sky to capture prey. Unlike the more gentle Pidgey, Pidgeotto can be more dangerous. Approach with extreme caution."

"Fearow, the Beak Pokemon and the evolved form of Spearow. Its large, powerful wings allow it to fly for an entire day without resting. It fights by using its sharp beak."

"Machoke, the Superpower Pokemon and the evolved form of Machop. With enough strength to lift a giant truck with one hand, Machoke are often used for extremely heavy work. Its boundless power is very dangerous, so it wears a belt to suppress its energy."

"Graveler, the Rock Pokemon and the evolved form of Geodude. Being a slow walker, Graveler rolls along the ground to move around. Once it builds enough momentum, no Pokemon can stop it."

"Hey guys, look!" Michelle cried.

I glanced up and I could see Celadon City in the distance.

"Celadon City! We made it!" Jason cried.

We returned our Pokemon and Jason glanced at Michelle.

"Hey Michelle, what's up with your hair?" he asked.

So he had noticed that her hair was sticking up, too.

"What do you mean?" she said running her hands through her hair.

"It's sticking up."

"I don't know." she said, not really wanting to talk about it.

He shrugged and started walking. Michelle glanced at me. She seemed confused, since I wasn't really talking to Jason.

"What happened?" we asked at the same time.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"When you hugged me, I was shocked. Like an electric shock." I explained. "Eevee has a burn on her front paw, too."

"Oh...well, Eevee was attacked with Thunder by Hunter Oliver's Raichu..."

"What else?"

"Thunder was used on me, too..."

"What?!" I cried.

"I'm fine," she said. "What happened between you two?"

"Oh you know, an argument."

"What?"

"Yeah, I got mad because he stopped me from running back to help you when you were captured." I said.

"Oh...I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault."

She thought for a few minutes. "So how did you two get into the ship?" Michelle asked loud enough so Jason would hear.

"That would be Adam. He came up with the idea to knock out the two grunts who were by one of the trucks. I drove it after he explained how to work those stupid trucks. Adam came up with all of the plans today." Jason explained.

"Adam, did you hear what I muttered at the end when I blew up at you?" he asked me.

"Yeah...I did. You told me to think for once."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that. I was just mad."

"I'm sorry, too. But Michelle's back, safe and sound." I said.

Michelle looked at me and gave a small smile. "You saved my life. Thank you, Adam. I'll never forget this."

"Don't mention it. After all, you'd do the same for me, right?"

Michelle walked between Jason and I and put an arm around each of our shoulders and said, "Of course I would. I'd do it for both of you!"

And so we walked down the path to Celadon City side by side with our arms around each others' shoulders. Each of us was happy to be alive and safe after such a dangerous experience, and glad to know that we could count on each other to be there for one another, even in times of danger.

We could trust each other with our lives.

**Author's Note: Adam and the others have their most dangerous experience yet as they encounter a Pokemon Hunter and have a brush with death! But thanks to Adam's plan, they were able to escape and gain some new Pokemon along the way.**

**And with the knowledge that the three of them can now trust each other with their very lives, their friendship has grown stronger than ever! Even if they do still argue sometimes.**

**What new adventures await them in Celadon City?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	22. A New Rival, A New Ribbon!

We walked through the streets of Celadon City. I half-listened to what Jason and Michelle were talking about, my mind kept thinking of the Pokemon Hunter. Pokemon Hunters are usually hired by someone, but...

"Guys..."

"What?" Michelle asked, glancing at me.

"I just thought of something. Pokemon Hunters are hired by people and work alone. Oliver, he was ordering the Team Rocket grunts around. I think he's working with Team Rocket directly."

Michelle paled, I think she was slightly afraid of Oliver now, after what had happened to her. "We can tell Officer Jenny." she said.

"Ha! No, we can't." Jason said, laughing slightly.

"What do you mean?"

"We tried once before. In Cerulean City, before we met you. She didn't believe us. She said Team Rocket could never be back together after being defeated all those years ago." I replied.

"Without the police believing us, we're going to have to be careful when we run into Team Rocket." Jason said.

"Yeah, that's for sure. Just how much more powerful is Team Rocket now, compared to when they were around all those years ago?"

"Powerful enough to have a Pokemon Hunter on their side that will work directly for them and nobody else. Things just got a lot more dangerous."

We turned and walked to the Pokemon Center and walked to the front desk.

"Hello, how may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked.

"We need one room. Can you heal our Pokemon, too?" Michelle asked.

Nurse Joy typed in something on the computer and then she slid a key over to us.

"You're in room five, enjoy your stay." Nurse Joy said as she placed the tray onto the counter.

We put our Pokeballs on the tray while Eevee and Pikachu hopped onto the counter.

"Thank you,"

We walked to our room and Michelle opened the door. She walked to one of the beds and tossed her bag onto the bed.

"I don't know about you two, but I'm going to freshen up." she said.

Michelle left the room to head to the showers down the hall. Jason grabbed his bag and walked to the bathroom that was in our room and I left the room to use the showers down the hall, too.

I walked back to the room afterwards and walked in to see that Jason was out and ready. I was ready too, but Michelle wasn't back yet.

"Why do girls take forever to clean themselves up?" Jason muttered.

"I guess they just want to make themselves look nice for people. At least that's what my mom says." I replied. "I personally don't care that much about it, and neither does my dad."

I sat down on my bed and after five minutes, the door opened and Michelle walked in. We left the room and got our Pokemon back. As we turned around, I saw Nikki.

"Hey, Nikki." Michelle greeted.

"Hi, hi!" Nikki cried, running over to us.

"Hey," Jason and I greeted.

Nikki waved to us in reply.

"Nikki, when's the next contest in Celadon City?" Michelle asked.

Nikki thought for a minute and counted on her fingers.

"In three days. And guess what?! The contest is a double performance contest! Two Pokemon at once!"

"What?!" Michelle cried.

"Yeah, I'm kinda nervous, too. It's my first double performance as well."

"Don't be nervous. Those kinds of contests make awesome combinations and your Pokemon look twice as great, but the judges are tougher on how you perform." a voice said.

We turned to see Blair, the girl we had met when Jason had released his Butterfree.

"Hey, Blair!" Michelle greeted.

Jason and I nodded our heads in greeting.

"Oh, Blair, this is Nikki. Nikki, this is Blair." Michelle said, introducing the girls to each other.

"Nice to meet you." Nikki said.

"Likewise," Blair said.

"Oh! Ideaaaa! How about we all hang out, the three of us? A girl's day!" Nikki asked excitedly.

"I'm in for it." Michelle said.

"Yeah, me too." Blair said.

"We can go shopping!"

Michelle turned around, about to ask if Jason and I wanted to come, but we were long gone, only a cloud of dust was left where we were standing just a second before.

**Michelle's POV**

We left the Pokemon Center and headed towards the department store. We walked in and it was pretty busy. I had heard that Celadon City had the largest store in Kanto, but this was incredible!

We walked to the directory to see what all the stores were in here. We decided to go through the whole place floor by floor. We walked along the first floor in silence for a while.

"So Blair, how old are you?" Nikki asked.

"I'm fourteen," Blair replied.

"Really?"

"Yep,"

"Where are you from?" I asked.

"I was born in Snowpoint City in Sinnoh. There's snow there all year 'round." Blair answered.

"Oh, I couldn't live there. I hate the cold." Nikki said, shivering.

"I could deal with it, but I would rather live where's there's water nearby." I said.

"So you're a coordinator?" I asked.

"Yeah, that's been my dream ever since I was little. You see, my mom's a coordinator, so I guess she inspired me. I've been in a lot of Grand Festivals. Sinnoh Grand Festival twice, once in Hoenn, and once in Johto. My next stop is the Kanto Grand Festival."

"Wow..." Nikki and I said.

"But despite all of my success, I've never won a Grand Festival before." Blair added in disappointment.

"Who's your idol?" Nikki asked.

Blair looked at her shoes and her face was red slightly. "Umm...you two probably won't know who it is."

"We're coordinators, we'll know." Nikki said.

"Yeah!" I cried.

"Well...I'll let you guys guess by clues."

"Fine,"

"It's a Hoenn coordinator, originally."

"Hmm...that knocks out Dawn and Johanna." Nikki said.

"Kenny and Zoey are out, too." I said to myself. "Boy or girl?"

"Boy,"

"A coordinator that is from Hoenn who is a guy." Nikki muttered.

I thought of all the magazines I had read and all of the contests I had watched.

"May and Solidad are out." Nikki said.

I shivered at the name that just appeared in my head. "That leaves Harley or Drew." I said.

"Wow, you two do know your coordinators. Now who is it?" Blair asked, raising an eyebrow.

"By your red face...we would say..." Nikki trailed and whispered the name to me. "Tell her."

"Drew. That's your idol." I said.

Blair's face had a small pink hue to it, but she nodded her head. "How can you not like his performances? I love the performances with his Roserade and Masquerain. He's my favorite coordinator, even though my mom inspired me first."

We got on the escalator, not seeing any interesting shops on the first floor.

"Who's your idol?" Blair asked us as we stepped onto the second floor.

"Well..." Nikki trailed.

"My idol is Zoey." she said.

"My idol is Dawn." I said.

"Dawn?! As in, Dawn Ketchum?!" Nikki squealed. I sweat-dropped and nodded my head.

"Dawn is, like, amazing! I love her contest performances, but all of her combos were way too complex for me to pull off."

Blair had a thoughtful expression on her face. "Wait a second...I never realized it until now, but Adam...he looks like Ash Ketchum..." she trailed.

"Yes, Adam is the son of Ash and Dawn." I said.

"I knew something about him set off a bell in my head."

"Oh! I need to go in here." Nikki cried.

I glanced at the name of the store, which was called Kitchen's Corner. We walked into the store, which sold food and lots of it.

_I should buy some more food for when we go back out on the road. The Pokemon need some more, too. We're low on bread and berries and cans of soup. We need more to eat 'cause that lunch meat didn't last long. _I thought. I grabbed a basket while the other two did, too.

"Hey Michelle, what do you guys eat?" Nikki asked as she walked over to me.

I walked down the aisle that had canned fruit down it.

"Well, bread, berries, cans of different foods that we can cook over a fire, and a few times, lunch meat. We don't know how to cook so we get things that can be eaten without much prep." I said.

"Wow...well, cooking is easy." Nikki said.

"You cook?"

"No, Trevor cooks...I burn everything."

"Wow..."

"We usually eat soups and sandwiches." Nikki said.

I gathered a good bit of food that should last us for a while. I paid and waited for Blair and Nikki to finish.

"Let's go," Blair said as she and Nikki walked over as they finished.

We walked out of Kitchen's Corner and started towards the escalator. We stepped onto the third floor and started walking around. We talked about what we liked to do, what we had encountered while on our journeys (I left out Team Rocket), and what we missed back at home.

We entered a store on the fourth floor called Trainers General. I stocked up on potions and other healing items for myself and Adam and Jason.

We got to the last floor and into a clothing store, just looking at the clothes. I saw an outfit that was really cute, but I couldn't buy a new outfit. I liked my own outfit that I traveled in.

We finally walked out of the department store and said goodbye.

"See you at the contest." I said.

"Bye," Nikki said.

"See ya," Blair said.

* * *

><p>After a day with Nikki and Blair, Adam was once again helping me train in preparation for the contest.<p>

"Pidgeotto and Machoke, lets show 'em!" Adam cried, tossing his Pokeballs. It was his first-ever battle with Machoke and his first battle with Pidgeotto since it evolved.

"Pidgeotto!"

"Ma! Machoke!"

I had planned to let Eevee sit out this contest and cheer me on with Adam and Jason. I was going with a Fire and Water duo in this contest.

"Showtime, Poliwag and Growlithe!" I cried, tossing my Pokeballs.

"Poli!"

"Growl!"

"Alright. You can go first, Adam." I said.

"Pidgeotto, use Gust! Machoke, use Low Kick!" Adam cried.

"Poliwag, counter Machoke with Water Gun! Growlithe, use Agility and then Flamethrower!"

Growlithe was able to move out of the way of the Gust thanks to Agility and hit Pidgeotto with Flamethrower. Poliwag waited and jumped in the air, avoiding the Low Kick and used Water Gun on Machoke.

"Yes!" I cried.

"Good job, Michelle. You know how to think on your toes." Adam said.

"Thanks, Adam." I replied as we continued training.

* * *

><p>The day of the contest was here. I stood backstage, talking to Nikki. Adam and Jason had left just a few moments ago along with Eevee.<p>

"I'm so nervous." Nikki said.

"I know, I am too." I said. Neither of us had done a double performance before.

"Like I said before, don't be scared. These contests are just like any other contest, just with two Pokemon and the judging is harder." Blair said.

"Wow Blair, that's so pretty!" I cried, seeing her outfit.

"Oh, thanks!" Blair said.

"It is pretty. Love the accessories." said Nikki.

Blair looked completely different from her tomboy appearance. She was wearing a dress that reached just below her knees. It was two-toned black and red and she had short black boots on her feet with slight heels. She had a large ruby gem necklace around her neck and a fake rose in her hair. Her blonde hair, which was normally in a bun, was now curled and falling down her back.

"Good evening, everybody! It's time for another contest! This contest is taking place in wonderful Celadon City! The contestants will be competing for the Celadon Ribbon in this Pokemon Double Performance Contest! The goal is to wow the judges with two Pokemon, making brilliant combinations! I'm Jillian, your host! Let's meet our wonderful judges!" Jillian announced.

"We have Shawn Contesta!" Jillian cried.

"I am looking forward to what each Coordinator has planned with their Pokemon." he said.

"Now, the President of the Pokemon Fan Club, Mr. Tatsu!"

"Double Pokemon! Twice the fun!" he exclaimed.

"Lastly, we have our very own Nurse Joy!"

"I can't wait to see the types and the combinations in store." she said.

"Now that you've met our wonderful judges let's meet our wonderful coordinators! Entry number one, you're up!" Jillian cried.

"Oh, that's me!" Blair cried, running.

"Entry number one is Blair!"

I looked at to the screen to see the curtains start to rise. Blair ran out, jumped over the steps and she landed, giving a little twirl. While she twirled, she raised her arms and tossed her Pokeballs.

"Roselia, Buneary, showtime!"

Many flower petals appeared as both Pokeballs opened and formed a flower before it exploded, revealing Roselia and Buneary.

"Roselia, use Magical Leaf!" Blair cried. Dark leaves appeared and shot towards the fans.

"Ice beam, Buneary!" Ice shot at the leaves, covering them in ice with a dark purple glow around them.

"Roselia, now use Energy Ball! Buneary, use Dizzy Punch!"

Both moves hit the frozen leaves, shattering them and making sparkles fall across the stage. Blair and her Pokemon waited for the judges' reactions as cheers erupted from the crowd.

"Wonderful!" Jillian cried.

"A wonderful performance, using a Grass type move with an Ice type move." Shawn said.

"Roselia and Buneary looked like they were having fun!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"Such a splendid performance. Great way to start off the contest." said Nurse Joy.

Blair returned Buneary and walked backstage with Roselia walking beside her.

"Wow, that was awesome!" Nikki cried.

"You did great." I said.

"Thank you both. Oh, I would like you to meet my partner, Roselia. She was a Budew when I first got her."

Nikki giggled to herself as she looked at Roselia.

"It's so cute! If I ever come across a Budew or Roselia, I'm gonna catch it." I said.

The contest continued for a little while and soon, it was my turn. I waited for my name to be announced.

"Our next entry is Michelle!" Jillian cried.

I ran onto the stage as the curtains rose and I jumped over the steps.

"Growlithe, Poliwag, spotlight!" I cried, spinning and tossing the Pokeballs. The Pokeballs opened to reveal flames.

"Water Gun, Poliwag! Growlithe Agility!" I cried before anyone had even seen my Pokemon appear. Water Gun hit the flames, canceling them out and steam appeared, shadowing Growlithe and Poliwag. The stream cleared to reveal my Pokemon.

"Growlithe, use Ember! Poliwag, Bubblebeam!" Both moves hit one another causing sparkles to fall. It was a type of combo move I had seen Dawn do before.

"Growlithe, use Agility and then Flame Wheel!" Growlithe used Agility and then followed quickly with Flame Wheel and was moving along the stage in a spinning wheel of fire at a very fast pace.

"Bubblebeam!" I yelled to Poliwag. The bubbles shot towards Growlithe and they were popped, but the fire didn't go out. The crowd let out "Ohh" and "Ahh" as it happened.

"Now wrap it up!" Growlithe was now in the air and Poliwag shot a lot of bubbles. The bubbles put the fire out and Growlithe flipped and landed on the stage. The plan for this was to cause shimmering sparkles from the water to fall after hitting the flames, and to also to show that Growlithe was a strong Fire type against the Water type moves. The crowd cheered for us loudly.

"A unique performance!" Jillian cried.

"What a wonderful way to show the power of Growlithe against Poliwag." Shawn said.

"Water and Fire! Perfect performance!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"Your Pokemon showed great moves and strength." Nurse Joy said.

I walked backstage where Blair and Nikki were.

"That was different, but really good." Nikki said.

"That was a good job. I've never seen anything like that." Blair said.

"Thanks,"

Nikki's turn was next.

"Next up is Nikki!" Jillian cried.

Nikki ran onto the stage and walked down the stage. She tossed her Pokeballs.

"Curtain, Vulpix and Dratini!"

Hearts appeared all around Vulpix and Dratini as they landed on the ground.

"Okay! Vulpix, let's use Fire Spin! Dratini, Thunder Wave!" The Fire Spin was covered by electricity.

"Now Hyper Beam, Dratini! Flamethrower, Vulpix!" The two moves broke the electric-covered Fire Spin and collided with one another. Both Pokemon didn't back down and the moves caused sparkles to fall onto the stage along with a few embers and sparks from the electric/fire twister.

"Wow! Wonderful!" Jillian cried.

"What an amazing performance! It showed power and class!" Shawn cried.

"Incredible!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"A great performance and a lovely pair." Nurse Joy said.

Nikki returned her Pokemon and went backstage.

"That was really good." I said.

"Yeah, that was a great performance." Blair said.

"Thanks,"

After one more performance, the appeals were over and we were now waiting. Adam and Jason had walked backstage to talk to me.

"You did great, Michelle." Adam said.

"Yeah, you did." Jason agreed.

"Thanks, guys." I replied.

I was nervous that I wouldn't make it to the next round. All of the techniques performed by the coordinators were amazing.

"Now it's time to show who will be moving onto the second round! The eight Coordinators moving on are..."

On the screen it showed: Blair, Nikki, some guy, some guy, me, some girl, some girl, and some guy.

"Yay!" I cried, happily relieved.

"Good job, Michelle. And good luck," Adam said, turning to go back to the stands.

"Good job, best of luck." Jason said, leaving.

"Now to show who will be facing off against who in the battle round!"

I was facing off against a guy who I believed was Francis. Nikki was facing off against Julie. Blair was facing off against who I believed was Renee.

I walked towards the stage, since I was battling first.

"It's time for our first battle of the second round. To my right is Michelle and to my left is Francis! Five minutes on the clock and...BEGIN!" Jillian cried.

"Poliwag, Growlithe, spotlight!" I cried, tossing my Pokeballs.

"Rapidash and Nidoran, curtain!" Francis cried, throwing his Pokeballs.

… …

The buzzer went off and I looked at the points.

"The winner is Michelle!"

… …

"Roselia and Pachirisu, showtime!" Blair cried, tossing her Pokeballs.

"Igglybuff, Squirtle, dazzle them!" Renee cried, tossing her Pokeballs.

… …

I wasn't surprised when Jillian announced Blair as the winner. Blair had countered most of Renee's moves with even better moves, deducting Renee's points.

… …

"Curtain, Dratini and Electabuzz!" Nikki cried, tossing her Pokeballs.

"Jigglypuff and Ninetails, go!" Julie cried, tossing her Pokeballs.

… …

"The winner is...Nikki!" Jillian announced.

Nikki's battle was a close one. With Julie having a Ninetails, it was hard to counter, but Nikki pulled through in the end.

… …

"Growlithe, Poliwag, spotlight!" I cried.

I was determined to go to the finals and maybe face off against Blair to see how tough of a rival she really was. I had seen what she could do, but I wanted to experience it myself.

"Venusaur! Chansey! Showtime!"

… …

"The winner and who will be moving on to the finals is...Michelle!" Jillian announced.

… …

I sat backstage, awaiting the next battle. Nikki and Blair were waiting for their battle to start. The winner would face me for the ribbon.

"To my right is Blair and to my left is Nikki! Five minutes on the clock and...BEGIN!"

"Roselia and Pachirisu, showtime!" Blair cried.

"Curtain, Dratini and Electabuzz!" Nikki cried.

I noticed just then that even when Nikki battled, she kept her peppiness, but her eyes showed the fierce determination she hid.

"Petal Dance! Pachirisu, Discharge!"

"Counter with Twister and Thunder!"

I watched in shock as some of the petals got hit or sucked into the twister, but some also hit Dratini and Electabuzz. The two Electric moves also fought for dominance, creating a cloud of smoke.

Nikki's points were lower than Blair's.

"Magical Leaf! Pachirisu, get ready."

"Hold your ground! Dratini, use Hyper Beam! Electabuzz, Thunder Punch!"

"Now, Pachirisu! Hyper Fang!"

Nikki had made a mistake by calling out Hyper Beam. Pachirisu was heading towards Dratini, who was charging the Hyper Beam, unable to protect itself or dodge!

"Electabuzz! Protect!" Electabuzz stopped its Thunder Punch and jumped in front of Dratini, shielding Dratini from Hyper Fang.

"Oh no...she-" I muttered, but stopped.

"NO!" Nikki cried, realizing her mistake.

Blair had tricked Nikki into having Electabuzz get in front of Dratini, who was charging a Hyper Beam. Now the Hyper Beam was charged and was being released...right into Electabuzz! Electabuzz took the attack and was thrown towards Blair's side.

The buzzer went off and Nikki's points were almost gone while Blair's were only halfway gone. Nikki looked at Blair in complete shock. Blair hadn't shown that strategy until now. She must've either known or took a chance on a hunch that Electabuzz knew Protect.

So here I was. Blair and I in the final round. Winner gets the ribbon. I walked towards the stage, took my spot and waited. I knew Blair was a much more experienced coordinator than me, so I would have to be at my best here.

"It's time for the final match! To my left is Michelle and to my right is Blair! Five minutes on the clock and...BEGIN!"

"Roselia and Pachirisu, showtime!" Blair cried.

"Growlithe, Poliwag, spotlight!" I cried.

"Petal Dance and Discharge!"

"Fire Spin! Water gun!" I cried.

But I commanded it a second too late and the Petal Dance and Discharge attacks hit my Pokemon.

"Magical Leaf!"

"Flamethrower!"

The flames easily burned through the attack and damaged Roselia, but I was still behind.

"Electro Ball!"

"Water Gun!"

I quickly realized my mistake. Water was weak against Electric attacks. The Electro Ball hit the Water Gun and it sent shocks through the water towards Poliwag. Poliwag was electrocuted.

"Roselia, use Energy Ball!"

"Growlithe, protect Poliwag with Flamethrower!"

The battle continued until Jillian said, "We're reaching the halfway point and Blair is leading by a long shot!"

I looked at the points. Blair's were down by a fourth, while mine were halfway gone.

"Discharge!"

"NO!"

Pachirisu released the attack and it hit Growlithe and Poliwag. My Pokemon laid on the ground for a few moments.

"Come on, you can do it!" I cried.

Growlithe stood up and shook her head. "Growl!"

"Alright, use Agility and Flame Wheel!" I cried.

"Get ready!" Blair yelled.

Poliwag was still lying on the ground.

"Poliwag, I know you can do this. Come on!" I cried. And then...Poliwag started to glow with a white light.

"What?! Well, it looks like Poliwag is evolving!" Jillian cried.

The light vanished and where Poliwag once was, now stood a fully healed Poliwhirl!

"Poliwhirl, do it!" I cried, pointing. Poliwhirl used Hydro Pump.

"Dodge!" Blair cried.

"Growlithe, Flamethrower!" I cried.

Maybe now, I could turn things around. I then realized Growlithe had gotten to Blair's side of the stage and was behind her Pokemon.

"Do it!" Both attacks hit Roselia and Pachirisu. When the dust cleared, Roselia was struggling to get up, having taken a lot of damage from Flamethrower.

"Growlithe, use Flame Wheel with Flamethrower! Poliwhirl, Hydro Pump!" Growlithe spun towards Roselia, who was still struggling to get up and Pachirisu was waiting for orders.

"Protect Roselia, Pachirisu! Use Discharge!" Pachirisu used Discharge, but Growlithe continued towards the two, not stopping. Poliwhirl was able to avoid the attack and used Hydro Pump.

Growlithe slammed into Roselia with Flame Wheel and then blasted Roselia and Pachirisu with Flamethrower. The Water Gun slammed into the two shortly after.

"Time's up!"

"The winner of the Celadon City Contest is..." Jillian trailed.

"Michelle, with an amazing comeback!" she cried.

I was shocked as I looked at the points. I had barely won against Blair. I almost thought I was done for, but with Poliwhirl, I turned the battle around and won!

"You both did great. Thank you. Poliwhirl, good job with evolving." I said, returning my Pokemon.

Blair had returned her Pokemon and was walking to the middle of the field to meet me. I hurried over and stuck out my hand.

"Well Michelle, you're a great rival to have. You're an awesome coordinator, too. I didn't expect that you'd be able to turn things around like that." she said.

"Thanks, Blair. You are, too. And your strategies are just...wow."

"I try. Well, go and get the ribbon. You've earned it."

I walked to the stage and was handed the ribbon. I added my second ribbon to my case and went to change. After I was done, I walked out of the contest hall to find Adam, Jason, and Eevee waiting. Eevee ran and jumped into my arms happily.

"Good job on winning." Jason said, nodding his head.

"Congrats on getting your second ribbon, Michelle. I think that's the best that I've ever seen you perform!" said Adam.

"Thanks, guys." I said, smiling.

"Now it's our turn!" said Adam. "Time for Jason and I to battle the Celadon Gym Leader and win our badges!"

"We'll head over there tomorrow. I get to challenge the gym first this time." said Jason.

**Author's Note: And so, after piecing together some things about Team Rocket, the gang reaches Celadon City. Michelle gains a new rival in Blair and manages to mount a giant comeback and defeat her in the contest to win her second ribbon, evolving her Poliwag into Poliwhirl along the way. Up next, Jason and Adam's gym battles!**

**See if the boys will win their badges next time on Pokemon NG!**


	23. Grass, Wind, and Fire

**Normal POV**

Hunter Oliver stood before a man who was in the shadows. He had to answer to his boss for letting the three kids slip through his fingers.

"Tell me again, Oliver. What happened?" the man asked.

"The three children were trapped in the room with no way to escape out of the door. Once I landed back here, they were gone, along with the other two Pokemon we had caught. The window was shattered. They escaped through the window, sir." Oliver said.

"You let them slip away?! You fool! You should have had one of your men in there watching them! Or had him tie them up!

"I know, sir. I was careless."

"Yes, you were careless...very careless."

Oliver remained silent.

"Well...to make sure that this never happens again...Zangoose, if you would." the man said calmly.

The Pokemon leaped from the shadows with its claw glowing white and slashed Oliver before he had time to shield himself. The Pokemon then returned to the shadows.

Oliver screamed in pain as he clutched his face, which was where Zangoose had slashed him. Blood was pouring from his face.

"Consider that your punishment for failing. If you fail me again, the next thing Zangoose will slice is your throat! Now leave!"

Oliver left, still holding his bleeding face and groaning in pain. Once out of the room, he went to the medical ward to clean his face up. After he was finished, he looked at his reflection. He had a deep scar running diagonal from above his right eye, across his nose, to his left cheek. It would remind him of his carelessness.

"When I capture those kids and the boss is finished with whatever plans he has for them, I'll make sure that they all die a slow and painful death!" he swore to himself as he became filled with rage. "They'll beg for mercy. Mercy that I won't give them. I'll make them wish that they were dead so their suffering would end...and then I'll grant their wish."

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

As we walked towards the gym for Jason's gym battle, I couldn't help but remember what my dad had told me when he spoke about his story of what he went through to get to challenge Erika. I chuckled to myself, remembering the story.

"What's so funny?" Jason asked.

"What my dad went through to get to challenge Erika." I replied.

"What happened?" Michelle asked.

"Well...Celadon City is known for its great perfumes and smells. When my dad was first traveling through Kanto and he came here, Brock and Misty and even Pikachu loved the smells. My dad didn't, though. He thought perfume was overpriced and turned guys into zombies." I explained, chuckling.

"I think my mom once mentioned this story to me back when I was younger. I'm not too sure, though." Michelle said.

Jason quietly chuckled.

"Well, the store they visited sold perfume and Erika was the manager. She kicked him out for insulting her work, and he went to challenge the gym. He was declined, though. Because he didn't like perfume."

"That's stupid," Jason said.

"Yeah, but you can't change the past." I replied.

"Anyways...he ran across Team Rocket; Jessie, James, and Meowth. Total jokes. They were hanging from a tree, having gotten caught in the gym."

"So back then, Team Rocket really were jokes?" Michelle asked.

"Yeah, they got caught all the time." I answered.

"They said that they would help my dad if he got them out of the tree. My dad helped them, but only because he couldn't enter the Pokemon League without the badge." I started to laugh and shook my head. "He...well, let's just say that he went from being Ash to 'Ashley', and from wearing his clothes to wearing a dress."

Jason and Michelle started laughing loudly.

"He dressed...as a girl?!" Michelle cried, trying to stop laughing.

"Well, Jessie and James were 'Ashley's' parents. My dad was enrolled into a class she taught and got into the gym. No one knew it was him...Pikachu did, though."

"Wow...that was a good disguise."

"Soon, his true identity was discovered and Team Rocket attacked the gym while he was battling. The gym caught on fire in the attack. Erika's Gloom was still inside and my dad went back in and rescued Gloom. He earned the badge as thanks from Erika." I said, finishing the story.

We arrived at the gym and walked in. Michelle and I headed towards the bleachers while Jason headed towards Erika.

**Jason's POV**

While Adam and Michelle headed to the bleachers, I walked towards Erika. Erika had her back turned, but she turned around when she heard me coming. Erika looked to be in her late thirties. She still had her blue hair that was short, and she wore a green turtleneck, a tan skirt, and green flats.

"Are you here to challenge me?" she asked.

"Yes," I replied.

"Well then, I accept. I'm Erika, Gym Leader of the Celadon City Gym." Erika said as she walked towards the field.

"I'm Jason,"

A girl ran to the middle of the field and waited. "The battle between Gym Leader, Erika, and the challenger, Jason, will now begin!" she cried, raising the flags.

"Victreebel, go!" Erika cried, tossing her Pokeball.

"Fearow, let's go!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"You may attack first, Jason." Erika called.

"Alright, Fearow! Use Fury Attack!"

"Victreebel, Vine Whip."

The vines hit Fearow, doing only little damage. But the Fury Attack was blocked.

"Sleep Powder!" Erika cried.

I smirked slightly. "Blow the powder right back at Victreebel!" The Sleep Powder floated towards Fearow, but it was blown back towards Victreebel as Fearow flapped its large wings, creating wind.

"No!" Erika screamed as Victreebel's eyes drooped and it fell asleep.

"Alright Fearow, Aerial Ace!" Fearow zoomed towards Victreebel and Aerial Ace hit its mark.

Victreebel's eyes snapped open and Erika shouted, "Okay, Victreebel! Leaf Tornado!" Fearow was trapped in a tornado of sharp leaves.

"Hang in there, Fearow! Use Whirlwind to blow them away!" The leaves vanished and Fearow was still able to battle.

"Use Aerial Ace again!"

"Stop it with Vine Whip!"

"Watch out!" I cried.

Fearow avoided Vine Whip and Aerial Ace hit Victreebel. Victreebel was breathing heavily and had bruises all over its body. After a second or two, Victreebel fainted.

"Victreebel is unable to battle! Fearow wins!" the ref cried.

Erika returned her fainted Pokemon and removed her next Pokeball.

"You still okay to battle?" I asked Fearow.

"Fearow!" Fearow cried bravely.

"A good first battle, Jason. Your Fearow is strong." Erika said.

"Thanks. Victreebel battled hard." I replied.

She nodded her head and tossed her next Pokeball. "Tangela, go!" she called out.

"Use Drill Peck!" I said to Fearow, wanting to end this quickly.

"Tangela, Constrict!"

The vines slowed Fearow down, but it didn't stop her. Fearow landed the Drill Peck on Tangela.

"Use Power Whip!"

Tangela's vines grew and glowed purple and slammed into Fearow. Power Whip is a very powerful Grass attack, even if it wasn't very effective on Flying Pokemon.

"Fearow!" Fearow cried out. But it still flew in the air, not about to give up.

"Use Aerial Ace once more!"

"Dodge!"

Tangela didn't dodge in time and got hit. Aerial Ace is an attack that never misses! Tangela had taken a lot of damage and Fearow couldn't take much more, either.

"Power Whip!"

"Dodge!"

Fearow tried to dodge, but the damage was catching up to it. Fearow couldn't dodge in time and got hit. Fearow fell to the ground, fainted.

"Fearow is unable to battle! Tangela wins!" the ref cried.

"Good job, take a rest." I said, returning Fearow.

I grabbed my next Pokeball and tossed it. "Charmeleon, go!" I cried.

"Char!" Charmeleon cried, landing.

"Tangela, Constrict!" Erika cried.

"Charmeleon, use Fire Fang!"

Charmeleon barely avoided Constrict and ran towards Tangela. He jumped and bit Tangela with his flame-covered jaws.

Charmeleon jumped back and Tangela was breathing heavily with burns and more cuts covering its body. Then a fire covered its body. Tangela was burned!

Erika frowned slightly at Tangela being burned. "Use Power Whip!"

"Don't let them! Use Flamethrower to stop it!"

Charmeleon was quicker and attacked first, hitting Tangela dead on. As the attack stopped, Tangela still stood, but its eyes closed as it fell, fainted.

"Tangela is unable to battle! Charmeleon wins!" the ref cried.

Erika returned Tangela, thanking it.

"Well Jason, I'm impressed. You've shown great bonds with your Pokemon. Let's continue! Gloom, it's time!" Erika cried as she tossed her final Pokeball.

"Gloom! Gloom!" Gloom cried, landing on the ground.

"Use Flamethrower!" I didn't want to take a chance and try up-close moves. I knew Gloom had a bad scent and it would use that against its enemies.

"Dodge, Gloom. Use Acid!" Gloom successfully dodged the flames and spit a purple blob towards Charmeleon.

"Dodge!" Charmeleon dodged as the purple blob landed on the field, dissolving a small hole into the ground.

"Use Petal Dance!"

"Counter it with Flamethrower!"

The petals started flying towards Charmeleon and were burned into ashes, which fell to the ground.

"Gloom, let's use Sleep Powder!"

I smirked, knowing Gloom would have to get close to use that move. Gloom was almost up to Charmeleon and I called my attack.

"Flamethrower!" The flames shot towards Gloom and with no time to dodge, Gloom got hit head-on, full force. Gloom had taken a lot of damage from the super-effective move.

"Gloom, Acid!"

"Dodge!"

Charmeleon dodged, but some of the poison splattered onto him.

"Charmeleon, use Fire Fang!"

"Sleep Powder!"

Charmeleon ran towards Gloom and Gloom prepared to use Sleep Powder.

"Dodge!"

"Now, Gloom!"

Charmeleon dodged right as the Sleep Powder was sprayed into the air and Fire Fang hit Gloom. Charmeleon jumped back as Gloom stood there breathing heavily and unevenly.

"Gloom...Gloom..." Gloom said as it fell to the ground, fainted.

"Gloom is unable to battle! Charmeleon wins! Jason is the winner!" the ref cried.

"Alright! Way to go, Charmeleon!" I cried.

"Char,"

"Thanks, take a rest." I said as I returned Charmeleon.

I walked over to Erika, who was waiting with a green cushion in her hands.

"Well Jason, you and your Pokemon gave a great battle and proved how strong your bond is. I present you the Rainbow Badge." Erika said, extending the cushion to me.

"Thank you, Erika." I said as I removed the badge.

"Alright! I got the Rainbow Badge!" I cried as I removed my badge case and put the badge inside.

Adam and Michelle walked over to me.

"Good job, Jason." Michelle said.

"Looks like you're starting to use contest moves in your battling." Adam said with a smirk.

I then realized he was right, I was picking up on contest techniques.

"I guess so." I replied, slightly shocked.

**Author's Note: Hunter Oliver answers for his failure to capture the kids and vows revenge. Jason, meanwhile, wins his fourth badge.**

**Adam will be facing Erika next time on Pokemon NG!**


	24. Battles and Perfumes

I pulled my backpack onto my back and saw that Jason and Michelle were ready to go.

"Ready for your battle?" Michelle asked as Eevee jumped into her arms.

"Yeah!"

We left the Pokemon Center and returned our key, since we would be heading to Saffron City once I was done with my battle.

We entered the gym and Jason and Michelle made their way to the bleachers. Erika walked out of a room and saw me.

"Are you here to challenge me?" she asked.

"I am," I replied.

"As Gym Leader, I accept." Erika said as she walked to her side of the field.

The ref ran out and to the middle of the field.

"I'm Adam, by the way." I said.

"The battle between Gym Leader, Erika, and the challenger, Adam, will now begin!" she cried, raising the flags.

"Tangela, go!" Erika cried, tossing her Pokeball.

I thought for a moment about who I was going to use first. "Pidgeotto, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

I wanted to use my other Pokemon against Gloom, definently.

"You may attack first, Adam." Erika said.

"Use Quick Attack!" I cried.

"Power Whip!"

"Pidgeotto, dodge it!"

I wasn't going to get hit with that powerful move. Pidgeotto successfully dodged the purple vine that swung at it and kept speeding toward Tangela, striking it with Quick Attack.

"Tangela! Shake it off and use Constrict!" The attack hit Pidgeotto, doing little damage.

"Sand-Attack!" I called. Pidgeotto hid itself with the sand and Erika waited for it to reappear. "Now! Aerial Ace!" Pidgeotto shot out from the sand and towards Tangela.

"Dodge it!" Erika yelled. Tangela jumped out of the way, but Pidgeotto came back around and hit Tangela from behind. Aerial Ace is a move that doesn't miss!

Tangela cried out in pain as Erika called out her next attack. "Power Whip!" The purple vines shot towards Pidgeotto and attacked from behind doing some damage.

"Wing Attack, now!" Pidgeotto shook off the hit and flew towards Tangela, its wings glowing.

"Dodge!" Erika cried. Tangela successfully dodged in time...barely.

"Aerial Ace!"

"Power Whip!"

It seemed like Erika was going to try and hit Pidgeotto from above and the hit would cause Pidgeotto to slam into the ground. Erika knew that she couldn't beat Pidgeotto by attacking directly, due to Tangela's type disadvantage.

The purple vines started towards Pidgeotto, but Pidgeotto avoided it in time and hit Tangela, full force!

"Tang!" Tangela cried as it fell to the ground, fainted.

"Tangela is unable to battle! Pidgeotto wins!" the ref cried.

Erika returned her fainted Pokemon and removed her next Pokeball.

"I must say, a great first battle. Let's continue now." Erika said.

"Victreebel, go!" she cried as she tossed her Pokeball.

Great. That meant that Gloom would be her last Pokemon, just like yesterday.

"You okay to keep going, Pidgeotto?"

"Pidgeotto!" it cried.

"Okay, then!"

"Okay Victreebel, use Vine Whip!" Erika shouted.

"Avoid the vines!" I shouted.

One vine shot towards Pidgeotto, who dodged, but more came and latched onto Pidgeotto's feet.

"Now!" Victreebel swung its body in a circle and the vines swung with Pidgeotto attached, spinning my Pokemon in a circle.

"Do it!" The vines swept downwards and Pidgeotto was slammed into the ground.

She had that all planned out. Erika must've learned some things about how to deal with Flying Pokemon after battling Jason's Fearow yesterday. By immobilizing my Pokemon and slamming them into the ground, she would eventually wear them out. She was dealing indirect damage, since her Grass attacks aren't very effective on Flying Pokemon. I couldn't take a chance and let up my attacks with her using Vine Whip like that!

Pidgeotto got up, but I knew the damage was going to catch up to it.

"Use Quick Attack!" I cried. Pidgeotto quickly flew towards Victreebel.

"Dodge!" Erika commanded. But Victreebel couldn't dodge in time, and got hit.

"Vine Whip again!"

"Get out of there!" I cried.

Pidgeotto was too close to Tangela after using Quick Attack and she was going to try to grab Pidgeotto's legs again! Pidgeotto flew back towards me, but the vines were coming.

"Use Aerial Ace to dodge!" I yelled in a panicked voice. Pidgeotto didn't even have time to use Aerial Ace as the vines latched onto its feet again.

"You can still use the attack! You can do it!" I called desperately. Pidgeotto attacked the vines and the pain caused Victreebel to retract them.

"Way to go!" I cried. There was a way to escape from the vines after all!

"Use Leaf Tornado!" said Erika. Pidgeotto got trapped in the vortex of sharp leaves. I saw the top of the vortex and there was a hole.

"Use Quick Attack and fly out the top, then to Victreebel!" Pidgeotto was able to get out of the Leaf Tornado and was flying towards Victreebel.

"Sleep Powder!" Erika cried just as Pidgeotto was within range. The Sleep Powder was blown into the air and Pidgeotto flew right into it. Pidgeotto fell to the ground, asleep.

"Now, Victreebel! Use Vine Whip!"

"Wake up, Pidgeotto!" I cried.

But it was no use. The vines wrapped around Pidgeotto, lifted him into the air, and slammed him down, driving him into the ground.

"Come on, Pidgeotto. I know you can wake up."

But Pidgeotto remained asleep. Erika looked at the ref and gave a nod.

"Due to status effect, Pidgeotto is unable to battle. Victreebel wins!"

I removed my Pokeball and thanked Pidgeotto as I returned him. I removed my next Pokeball and looked at Victreebel. A few more well-placed hits and Victreebel would most likely be defeated.

"Charmeleon, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Victreebel, use Leaf Tornado!"

"Burn it with Flamethrower!" I cried.

The leaves were easily burned to ashes by the flames.

"Now, use Flamethrower again!" I commanded. Charmeleon ran towards Victreebel and shot the flames towards it. Victrebeel was engulfed in the fire.

"Finish with Metal Claw!" Charmeleon's claw turned to metal and struck the burning Grass Pokemon.

"Vi..." Victrebeel said as it fell to the ground, fainted.

"Victreebel is unable to battle." declared the ref, "Charmeleon wins!"

Charmeleon had been able to end the battle with just two attacks. He was even more powerful than I expected! Now all I had to do was beat Gloom.

Erika thanked her Pokemon as she returned it.

"Gloom, come on out!" Erika cried as she tossed her final Pokeball.

"Gloom! Gloom!" Gloom cried.

"Alright...Charmeleon, use Flamethrower!"

"Dodge, then use Acid!"

The flames shot towards Gloom who dodged and the purple blob of acid was launched towards Charmeleon.

"Dodge!" Charmeleon avoided the blob and it hit the ground, burning a hole into the field.

"Gloom, use Acid once more!"

"Dodge again!" Charmeleon dodged, and once again, a hole was in the field.

"Sorry, Erika! But my Charmeleon is just too fast! Now use Flamethrower!" The attack hit Gloom before Erika had time to command Gloom to dodge.

"Now use Metal Claw!"

"Get ready, Gloom!"

Charmeleon ran towards Gloom as its claw began to glow and turned to metal.

"Do it!"

Charmeleon leaped up and was about to strike when a greenish-brown fume came from Gloom. It was Gloom's secret weapon. A horrible odor to use as a counter against foes! Charmeleon landed the attack and ran from the area before it could reach him.

"Good job, Charmeleon." I said.

"Gloom, Petal Dance!"

"Counter, with Flamethrower!"

The flames burned the petals to ash. Gloom was getting tired.

"Lets finish this. Charmeleon, use Flame Wheel!" I cried. Charmeleon was engulfed with flames and spun towards Gloom.

"Acid!" Erika yelled. The purple blob hit the flames, but Charmeleon didn't slow down and continued towards Gloom.

"Dodge!" Gloom moved, but Charmeleon followed and slammed into Gloom from behind. Gloom got up and was on my side.

"Gloom, get ready for Sleep Powder." Erika said.

"Charmeleon. Flamethrower!" The flames shot towards Gloom.

"Now!" Erika shouted. Gloom moved backwards and jumped into one of the holes in the ground that had been created due to the Acid attacks, and the flames went over the hole as Gloom hid from the fire.

"Charmeleon, be ready." I said.

Gloom got out of the hole and waited.

"Now, Sleep Powder!"

"Use Smokescreen to counter it!"

Smoke covered the field and I could make out where Charmeleon was, but I could only barely see Gloom. I saw a faint silhouette.

"Metal Claw!" I saw Charmeleon start moving towards where Gloom last was spotted.

"Gloom! No!" Erika screamed.

The smoke started to clear and once it was gone, Charmeleon stood and Gloom had fainted.

"Gloom is unable to battle! Charmeleon wins! The winner of this battle is Adam!" the ref cried.

"Thanks, Charmeleon. Take a rest now." I said as I returned him.

Erika did the same to Gloom and walked over to me with the green cushion.

"A great battle, Adam. I present you with the Rainbow Badge." Erika said.

I removed the badge and held it up. "Yeah! I got the Rainbow Badge!" I cried. I put the badge in my badge case.

Erika looked at me for a minute and then said, "I knew I recognized you. You're Master Ketchum's son. At least you didn't have to dress as a girl, like your father."

I laughed and nodded my head. "Yeah..."

"Adam, I've seen what the news and many people are saying. But I for one believe he's alive out there." Erika said.

"Thanks, Erika."

Erika looked at Michelle and asked her, "Oh, I saw your contest yesterday. How would you like to come to my shop and sample some perfume?"

"Really?" Michelle asked, slightly shocked.

"Of course. For a limited time, all coordinators get their first bottle free. Many great coordinators from all over Kanto and Johto buy my perfume." Erika said.

"I think I've seen my mom use some of your perfumes before." I said.

"Yes, your mom is one of our most well-known customers, Adam." Erika replied. "So what do you say, Michelle?"

Michelle happily nodded her head. "I'd love to!" she exclaimed.

"Well, follow me, then."

Michelle eagerly followed Erika while I glanced at Jason, who groaned. I laughed and shook my head.

"Come on," I said as I followed.

Jason muttered something and followed.

Erika eventually stopped in front of one of the many shops in downtown Celadon City. The shop had a perfume bottle with a fume coming from it drawn on the door and window. Erika walked into the shop and Michelle followed.

"Can we just wait out here?" Jason asked.

"I don't think we can." I said.

Jason sighed and we walked into the shop. A lot of different smells filled my nose. Jason walked in and I guess he inhaled too much, since he was coughing. I guess he wasn't used to this many smells at once.

"Erika! Welcome back!" some voices said. It was a few girls who were working behind the counters.

"Hi, girls. This is Michelle. She's a coordinator who's here for the special offer we have going on. Let her sample what we have and give her a free bottle when she finds a scent that she likes." Erika said.

"Oh! I think we have some that she would love!" The blonde girl darted over to some of the shelves and grabbed bottles.

"This is a collection called Sweets. Personally, I love this collection. My favorite one, though, is the apple scent, it's really sweet-smelling." the blonde said.

Michelle tried some scents, including lilac, peach, and lavender. After a little while of bottles being sprayed and more coughing from Jason, Michelle finally found one that she liked.

"I like this one." Michelle said.

"Oh, you like my favorite one!" the blonde cried.

Michelle had picked the apple-smelling one.

"There you go." Erika said, handing Michelle the perfume bottle.

"Thank you," Michelle said, bowing her head. "I can't wait to try this perfume out for my next contest!"

"You're welcome. Please come back anytime." Erika said, smiling.

We left the shop and Jason took a breath of fresh air.

"That's too many different smells!" he cried.

Michelle and I laughed at him.

"Well, looks like it's finally time to go to Saffron City!" I cried.

"Yeah! Sabrina had better be ready!" Jason cried.

Saffron City...I wondered what would happen to us while we're there.

**Author's Note: There were some close moments, but Adam managed to beat Erika and win his fourth badge. Michelle also received a perfume gift from Erika to use in her next contest.**

**Be sure to read the next chapter where we will be taking another look back in Pallet Town to see Dawn, who will be having a very interesting talk with her mom, Johanna. What do you think they'll be talking about?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	25. A Talk at Home

**Author's Note: For this chapter, we will be taking another break from the journey of our three heroes, and take another look back in Pallet Town to see what's happening with Dawn and her mom, Johanna.**

**Dawn's POV**

My mom had been staying with me for a few weeks now. After all, she was there to help me deal with everything that had happened until Ash returned home. Ash had been missing for four months now.

I stood in the kitchen, fixing some tea. My mom was looking around the house. I guess she was trying to figure out what I was doing, since I was home alone.

"Mom, the tea is done." I called.

I heard my mom's footsteps approaching and she entered the kitchen. "Thank you, sweetie." she said, taking the cup I held out to her.

I grabbed my cup and followed her into the living room and I sat on the couch. She followed my actions and placed her cup on the table.

"Dawn, what has happened?" my mom asked, looking at me.

"What do you mean?" I asked, although I knew perfectly well what she was asking.

"Dawn..."

I stared at my cup, placed it on the table, and softly said, "A lot has happened."

"Start from the beginning of when things started to go wrong, after his...disappearance."

I knew my mom just wanted to know so she could help me, but honestly, so much had happened.

"Well...have you seen the Elite Four press conferences recently?" I asked.

"The Sinnoh ones. The Kanto ones, no."

"It was a little before the ship incident. I was scrolling through the channels and I saw the Elite Four symbol on the screen." I explained.

My mom nodded her head, telling me to continue.

"They...they declared that if Ash didn't return in nine months; which would equal to a year of him being gone, they would replace him with a new trainer as Pokemon Master."

My mom was thinking, since she had leaned back.

"That isn't right. They're supposed to contact you first, correct?" she asked.

"Yes, which brings up another thing. What's your opinion about them replacing him after a year?" I asked.

"Well, I don't think it's right that they think he's not going to return. I do agree with the year, though. At least they didn't replace him after the first month or so."

"True...I didn't think about that." I said.

"I think they also have faith that Ash is still alive, but they're losing faith. They're just making future plans in case..."

'In case he's dead', which is what my mom failed to say, knowing it would make me upset. I felt my heart ache just thinking about the possibility that Ash was dead. I knew that he wasn't dead, my heart told me that he's still alive.

"That makes sense. I didn't think of any of that. I was so angry."

My mom placed her hands on my hands. "Never let your anger cloud your judgment. Always try to find the reason for one's choice." she said, looking into my eyes.

"Now, tell me more." she said, taking a sip of her tea.

"Well, when Ash became Champion, the Elite Four said that they would tell me if anything happened or if they made any changes. So I just don't understand why they wouldn't contact me and tell me that they had made this decision. They're supposed to." I said.

"Well, they probably placed themselves in your shoes. Take a moment and think. What would you do if you had to call the Champion's wife and tell her, 'Oh, we would just like to let you know that if your husband doesn't return within nine months, he will be replaced.' Or, 'Oh, and if by any chance he did return after a year, he couldn't get his title back without participating in the league again.' Would you do that?"

My mom had me there. "No, I wouldn't do that. I wouldn't have the heart to do it." I replied. "Knowing that it could make the person lose their faith in the chance that he would return." I added softly.

"Exactly, which might be why they didn't contact you."

"Okay then, how do you explain them not talking to me when I called them?" I asked. "Is the League trying to hide something from me?"

My mom thought for a few minutes as I took a sip of my tea. "Well, Dawn, your reaction was anger after you saw the news, right?" she asked.

"Yes, I was angry at them." I replied.

"They probably knew that you would be angry. After all, they did this without telling you, and of course it would anger someone who is supposed to have a say in it."

"Right..."

"When you called, how did you sound? Did you demand them to talk to you? What?"

I thought back to what I had done. I had dialled and asked to speak to them, but they refused. "I just called and asked to speak to them. I think I was more curious to know why than angry. They refused to talk to me, which made me angrier."

"Okay, maybe they didn't know how to answer the questions you would ask."

There was a possibility that she was right. I was going to be asking questions that they might not have had the answers to. But for them to immediately jump to that conclusion...?

"Has anything else happened?" asked my mom.

I frowned, but then my hands became fists in my lap as I got angry, remembering what had happened.

"Dawn, what happened?" my mom asked, concerned by my sudden change.

"I received a phone call...from a childhood friend." I said slowly.

"From who?"

"Mom...a _childhood friend_."

She thought for a moment and she looked at me. "Kenny?"

"Yes,"

"What happened?"

I thought of how I could tell her the story. "Do...do you remember when I was travelling with Ash in Sinnoh?"

"Yes, of course I do."

"Well, do you remember when I called you one day in the late afternoon? When I was really upset?"

My mom thought for a little while, thinking back. "I think so, dear."

"What was the reason?"

"You said that Ash and Kenny had a battle. A rematch..."

I nodded my head, letting her know that she had the story right so far.

"Kenny had told you after the battle that he had feelings for you and he loved you."

I nodded my head.

"You were shocked and told him you loved someone else. You ran away crying, and called me."

"That's the story. Do you think you know what I'm about to tell you now?"

"Maybe,"

I took a breath and looked at my wedding ring. "Kenny called me, saying he was just calling a friend. Things didn't add up, though. He's had all these years to call me to talk to me, and then he just calls out of nowhere. It didn't make sense, until he told me why." I explained.

My mom nodded her head.

"He asked me if I remembered that rematch. I told him that I remembered and it felt like I knew what was about to happen, but I was hoping it wouldn't. I was uncertain if I should have said that I remembered. But now I wish I hadn't said that I did."

I traced my ring with my finger. "He told me...he told me that his feelings hadn't changed and he still loved me. He wanted me to give him another chance."

I glanced at my mom and she looked shocked.

"It's not over yet, mom." I said softly.

"Continue,"

"I got defensive and reminded him that I was married to Ash and I was Dawn Ketchum now. Then he then said something that really hurt. I'm really shocked that I didn't cry while I was on the phone with him."

"Dawn..."

"I'm fine, no need to worry." I said, waving my hands. Then I frowned at what I had just done. I had done that a lot when I travelled with Ash as a young girl. I would always wave my hands around and say my famous catch phrase. I could still hear Ash's voice in my head saying, _That's when I worry the most._

"Kenny told me Ash was dead and he wanted to be with me. He said I wouldn't be able to care of Adam by myself. He asked me if I really wanted Adam to grow up without a father, like Ash did. He also said that Adam deserves better than that...and that I do, too."

"He...he said that?" my mom asked, truly shocked.

"Yes, but it's still not over. I then got REALLY defensive. I had told him that Ash turned out fine without a father. I told him that I could care for Adam by myself and I wasn't the same girl that I was in preschool when we were kids. I told him not to say that Ash was dead."

I shook my head, refusing to cry.

"He then reminded me that Ash had been missing for three months at that time. He told me that Ash was gone. Forever. That's what really hurt me. He was now begging for another chance and once again said that he loved me. I then lost it and lashed out on him, telling him to not tell me that Ash was gone and I told him that I would never see Kenny the way he saw me. My heart belongs to Ash, and Ash alone. I said that I would never give up hope that Ash was alive until I see him wit my own eyes. Once I said that, Kenny looked truly hurt. He told me that he was sorry to bother me and ended the call, saying that he would always love me."

My mom was silent for a while, probably shocked by what I had just told her and she was still processing everything.

"...That really doesn't seem like Kenny. Love can make you do crazy things, though. Dawn, you love Ash and Ash alone. You have faith that's he's alive out there. Just never forget that you will have people that will try to break your love for Ash. Don't let them get the chance. Ever."

"I won't, mom. That, I can swear to you." I said.

"The love you share with Ash is very special. In all of my life, I've never seen two people love each other more than how much you and Ash love each other."

My mom paused for a second before saying, "Anything else, dear?"

I nodded my head. "I told you about this one before. Adam...he almost died and I was all alone for a while, believing that he was dead." I said, my voice cracking.

"I know, sweetie. I know. Adam has the sense of adventure and trouble that Ash seemed to have. He'll be safe, for Arceus is watching over him and his friends. They'll all be safe. Remember that Arceus is watching. Always."

"You're right. And with Arceus watching over Adam, I know he'll be protected." I said, smiling.

But my smile fell from my face quickly. "The last thing is...Team Rocket, may be back." I said quickly.

My mom had raised her cup of tea to her lips, but put it back down. "What did you say?"

"Team Rocket...they may be back."

"How do you know?"

"Adam and Jason called me after they met Michelle for the first time. Adam and Jason ran into Team Rocket at Mt. Moon. Team Rocket tried to attack them while their Pokemon were distracted. A Fire Pokemon and its trainer saved them. But they don't know who it is."

"How can Team Rocket be back, though? They disbanded years ago when Ash and the Elite Four banded together to destroy their old HQ."

"I'm not sure, but they could be back. I don't think many people believe that they could be back after all these years."

"Well, if they ARE back, Adam and his friends need to be careful. This new Team Rocket could be trouble."

A silence fell upon us. I hugged my mom and she hugged me back after the small shock.

"Thank you, mom. I feel a little better." I said.

"That's because you have someone to talk to about your problems. Dawn, if you ever need to talk, just tell me. I'll be here to listen."

"I know, mom. And thank you for being here." I said, pulling away.

My mom looked at me. "Dawn, I want you to listen to me." she said.

I nodded my head and waited.

"Remember all of the times that you, Ash, and Adam have spent together. Remember a different one each time you feel lonely. And every night when you go sleep, think of Ash and Adam and dream of all the things that the three of you will do as a family when they return."

I smiled and nodded my head. "I will, mom."

For the rest of the day, my mom either read a book that she had brought along with her or she helped me with fixing food or doing laundry.

My mom went to bed at around ten, since she was tired. I sat in my room on the bed.

I really did miss Ash dearly. I missed his light snoring when he was having a good night's sleep. I missed seeing his wild, untamed hair and dark chocolate brown eyes looking at me with love every morning when I woke up. I missed the times when he would stroke my hair, running his fingers through it whenever I was feeling upset or stressed. It always helped me calm down. I just missed everything about him.

I missed Adam, too. But he's living his dream and having fun, so I knew I should be happy for him.

I hopped off of the bed and walked to the dresser and undid my hair, letting it fall down my back. Ash always said that he liked my hair best when it was down like that. I then climbed into bed, thinking of the two most important boys in my life, and fell asleep. Then I began to dream.

* * *

><p><em>Adam, Ash, and I were on a boat, traveling to the Orange Islands. Ash had said he would take us there one day, ever since Adam saw his Orange League battle. I hadn't been there since Ash and I were on our honeymoon.<em>

_I looked up as I stood, looking at the ocean, watching as Pokemon jumped from the water and landed. __I smiled at the Pokemon and leaned against the rail. I felt a pair of arms wrap around my waist and pull me towards them._

_"Are you okay?" Ash asked, resting his head on my shoulder._

_"I'm fine, just watching the ocean." I replied._

_"We're almost there, Adam's in the room getting his things." _

_I nodded my head and leaned back against Ash. _

_"So what's the reason for this trip?" I asked, turning around in his arms and facing him._

_"Adam said that he wanted to come here someday. I said that I would take you both. I'm finally fulfilling the promise. Besides, it's been too long since the two of us were here together."_

_I laughed as we shared a kiss. "You're the best husband that a girl could ever have." I said as I stared at him lovingly. "I love you so much, Ash."_

"_And I love you too, Dawn. I always will."_

_"Attention, all passengers. We are now docking. Enjoy the Orange Islands." _

_"Mom! Dad!" Adam cried, running over._

_"Well, now we can get off and go." Ash said to us._

_We walked off of the boat and stepped off to the side and looked around._

_"So where are we going?" Adam asked._

_"Anywhere you want, son. We could stay here for a while so that you can see all of the islands that I saw when I was here." Ash replied._

_"Really?" _

_"Yeah, as long as it's okay with your mom. Hopefully, she won't mind staying." _

_"It is okay, mom?" _

_I smiled and nodded my head._

_"Well, I know where I want to visit." Adam said suddenly._

_"Where?" _

_"Shamouti Island," _

_"Of course you would." I said, looking at Adam._

_"Hey! I want to see where dad met Lugia and saved the world, and everything." Adam defended._

_I just smiled and laughed softly.__"Well, okay. It's a nice place to visit."_

_I remembered the story that Ash had told me one day when I was travelling with him through the islands. He had also told the story to Adam, who had been amazed by that story ever since. _

_After a few days of just doing nothing but some tourism, we were finally heading to Shamouti Island and Adam was very excited._

_"Do you think anyone will remember you?" Adam asked Ash as we sailed through the water._

_"I think at least one person will." Ash replied._

_"Could we visit Fire, Ice, and Lightning Islands, too?" _

_"I don't see why not, it's all around the same area." _

_"Awesome!" _

_I smiled at Ash and Adam, glad that my boys were back safe and sound._

**Author's Note: Talking with her mom has really helped Dawn out and made her feel better. Also, keep that dream scene at the end of the chapter in mind. It will play a part later on in the story.**

**We hope you've enjoyed this chapter as we take a break from Adam and the others. In the next chapter, we'll be back with them again as they continue their journey on Pokemon NG!**


	26. Ghost Hunters

After a long journey, we had finally arrived at the outskirts of Saffron City.

"Finally!" Michelle cried happily.

We ran the rest of the way, right into Saffron City, stopping to stare at the city around us. The biggest city in Kanto was full of skyscrapers. I quickly spotted the Silph Co. building and the train station that could take you to and from Johto.

"Wow, I didn't think Saffron City was this big." Michelle mumbled. She looked around and looked back at a building. She walked over to the wall and looked at a poster.

"A contest is going to be here...but not until a few more weeks." she said, frowning. That was a long time for her to wait for her contest.

"How about we go to the Pokemon Center?" Jason suggested. "We could use a break from all of the travelling."

We walked to the Pokemon Center and we spotted Michelle's friend and rival, Nikki.

"Nikki, hey!" Michelle cried.

Nikki turned her head and saw us. She gave a wave and we walked up to her. "Hi," she greeted. She wasn't in her usual peppy mood.

"Are you entering the contest here?" Michelle asked.

Nikki shook her head. "No, Trevor and I are just passing through Saffron City. We're on our way to Lavender Town. Lavender Town is where the next contest is. It's next week and the contest after that one is here in Saffron City." Nikki replied.

Michelle nodded her head in understanding.

"We're just stopping through here for Trevor's gym battle. Trevor and his battles, me and my contests."

"Did Trevor beat Sabrina?" I asked. My dad had told me how Sabrina battled. She would be the toughest gym leader that we had yet to battle.

Nikki opened her mouth, about to reply, but Trevor walked up behind her and spoke.

"None of your business." he said, cutting her off. My eyes lowered slightly when he approached and rudely cut Nikki off.

"Let's go, Nicole." Trevor said.

Nikki glared at Trevor and rolled her eyes. "Whatever. And it's Nikki, not 'Nicole', Trevor." she muttered.

"Let's go, Nicole." Trevor repeated as he walked away, completely ignoring what his sister had said.

Nikki sighed and glanced at Trevor's retreating form. "Well, see ya later." Nikki said, turning and following Trevor.

"Hey, Nikki! I'll see you at the contest in Lavender Town." Michelle called.

Nikki glanced over her shoulder. "Looking forward to it, Michelle." she said as she walked out of the center, waving goodbye to us.

"She wasn't in her usual cheerful mood." Michelle said.

"I noticed," I replied.

"She might be tired." Jason suggested.

A silence fell upon us.

"We should head to Lavender Town, too." I said suddenly.

Jason looked at me, confused. "We have a gym battle with Sabrina. Did you forget that we have to battle her?" he questioned.

"Well, Sabrina...she wasn't always like the way she is today. She used to be really scary and have a bit of an evil mind. My dad told me a story." I said.

"What story?" Michelle asked.

"Sabrina, she was two people. A little girl and her regular self, who was psychic. He told me that he faced Sabrina and her Abra, who evolved to Kadabra, and he was beaten easily. His friends and himself were shrunk down to the size of dolls and almost crushed.

"After Sabrina was eventually beaten, she was back to her old self. My dad warned me that Sabrina would be the toughest gym leader, since she is the Psychic type leader. We can't beat her with just brute force and regular battling." I explained. "We need to get Ghost Pokemon."

"That's true. Psychic types are tricky, since they can avoid attacks." Jason said softly.

"A Ghost Pokemon would be great for my contests, too. They can do both amazing performances AND battles!" Michelle said.

So it was settled. We were heading to Lavender Town tomorrow. For now, we were staying in Saffron City and leaving in the morning.

* * *

><p>A couple of days later, I could see the lights from Lavender Town faintly from where we were at. We were reaching Lavender Town at night. The best way to capture Ghost Pokemon is at night.<p>

"There it is," I said once we entered Lavender Town. In front of us was a very old building that looked very creepy. It was the Pokemon Tower, where Ghost Pokemon were said to live. We approached the door wearily.

My dad had found a Haunter here, which helped him to beat Sabrina. One thing that my dad never told me was what had happened here when he came to catch a Ghost Pokemon...no matter how many times I asked. So I could only wonder why.

I pushed the door open. The door groaned in protest and the noise bounced off the walls of the tower. We were now inside and we all glanced around nervously. The old building was chilly and eerie. This was creepy.

A crash was heard in the darkness and Michelle jumped, startled. "This isn't the best idea you've ever had, Adam." Michelle said softly.

"Hey, at least we have some light." Jason said.

The door then clanged shut and we were now in total darkness. The shutting of the door bounced off the walls. It was so quiet in here, that every sound bounced off the walls, making it sound ten times louder.

"You and your big mouth, Jason." I said.

"Sorry,"

It was too dark to see anything, so Jason cried, "Charmeleon, go!"

Charmeleon's flame made a soft glow so that we could see. I glanced around. The shadows of the furniture in the room made it feel a little creepy.

"Let's try that room." I said, pointing to the room in front of us.

We walked slowly towards the room, the floor squeaking occasionally.

"AH!" Michelle screamed.

Jason and I jumped from Michelle's sudden outburst. Her scream bounced off the walls and slowly faded.

"What?" Jason asked.

"Something just touched me...my hair was pulled." she said in a scared voice.

"Are you sure it wasn't Eevee?" I asked.

"Vee!" Eevee angrily cried in protest.

"I know it wasn't Eevee." said Michelle.

"It was probably just your mind playing a trick on you." Jason reassured her.

We walked into the room to find that it was...a dining room. Fresh food was on some of the plates.

"Why is there food?" Michelle asked. "No people live in here."

A crash was heard from the left, making us yelp. We all looked and a plate flew over our heads and smashed into the wall. Plates started flying at us and we ran out of the room, screaming in fright.

We ran to another room and it was empty, except for a table that was flipped against the wall. The door closed and locked behind us. We were trapped in the room!

"Gastly!"

"Haunt! Haunter!"

Three Pokemon appeared in front of us. Two Haunters and a Gastly.

"Well, we wanted to find Ghost Pokemon, and here they are! Ready to battle?" I asked.

"Yeah!"

"Pikachu, ready?" I asked.

"Pi!" Pikachu leapt from my shoulder and waited. Jason returned Charmeleon, since there was light in this room.

"Golduck, go!" he cried, tossing a Pokeball.

"Gold! Golduck!" Golduck cried, landing.

"Growlithe, spotlight!" Michelle cried, throwing her Pokeball.

"Growl! Growlithe!" Growlithe cried.

"Before we battle, there's something you need to know." I said to Jason and Michelle. "Ghost Pokemon have an advantage. They can float freely in the air and easily avoid attacks. They'll probably use Hypnosis so our Pokemon can't attack. I have a plan. Follow Pikachu's example and have Golduck and Growlithe copy what he does."

"Got it."

"Pikachu, use your Counter-Shield!" I cried.

"Pika!" Pikachu started to spin and electricity swirled around him. The Ghost Pokemon tried to move, but they would hit the electricity if they did. They were trapped!

"Growlithe, use Fire Spin while laying down!" Michelle cried. Growlithe was able to get the Fire Spin going and it worked perfectly. Growlithe had done a similar move before in a contest.

"Golduck, use Water Gun and spin like Pikachu!" Jason cried. Golduck used Water Gun while it spun around.

The Ghost Pokemon were trapped and weakened from the fire, water, and electric attacks.

"I'm gonna catch Gastly, if that's okay." Michelle said suddenly.

"Fine with me. I want to catch one of the Haunter." I replied.

"Okay," Jason said.

Jason moved to the left side of the room and removed an empty Pokeball.

"Good idea," I muttered, moving to the right side of the room, leaving Michelle in the middle.

The Pokemon we wanted to catch were floating in the air in that order. With us being spaced out, our Pokeballs wouldn't collide.

The attacks had stopped by now and we all threw a Pokeball. Our Pokeballs fell to the ground and wiggled a few times before finally stopping.

"Yes! I now have a new Pokemon that I can use for the Lavender Town contest." Michelle said, smiling.

"And we have a Pokemon to use against Sabrina." Jason said.

"Yeah, and we can win, too." I added.

Jason and Michelle released their Pokemon. I removed my Pokedex and pointed it at Haunter. Jason pointed his Pokedex at Gastly.

"Haunter, the Gas Pokemon. After evolving from Gastly, Haunter can learn the Dream Eater and Psychic attacks."

"Gastly, the Gas Pokemon. It has the power to turn itself completely invisible. Its specialty is Hypnosis."

I was going to release my Haunter as well, but my Pokeball shrunk. I pressed the release button, but my Pokeball wouldn't open.

"Why isn't it opening?" I asked myself softly.

I then made a list in my head. Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Charmeleon, Pidgeotto, Squirtle, and Machoke. I now had seven Pokemon and a trainer can only carry six at a time. No wonder it wouldn't open.

"I don't know about you guys, but I wanna leave. I'm really cold." Michelle said as she returned Gastly.

We opened the now unlocked door, walked through the building, and out of the door into the night.

"It's cold out here, too." Michelle mumbled.

"It probably feels that way because we all just had a pretty big scare in there." I replied. "It's actually not that cold."

"By the way, good call with the attacks, Adam. How did you know what to do against them?" she asked.

"Thanks. My dad figured out how to use that move back when he was travelling through Sinnoh with my mom. She was the one who inspired his idea. He came up with it because he needed to find a way to beat the Ghost type gym leader, Fantina."

We walked towards the Pokemon Center to get a room so we could sleep. After travelling for a couple of days, going directly to the tower as soon as we arrived in town, and getting pranked on by our new Pokemon, I was really tired and I knew the others were, too.

We walked into the Pokemon Center, which was empty, except for Nurse Joy. Since it was late at night, everyone was asleep, but Nurse Joy wasn't. It was strange being in a Pokemon Center that was quiet. No television playing, no murmurs from people talking, nothing.

Nurse Joy looked up from whatever she was doing and saw us.

"My, my, you're out late. You three look exhausted." she stated.

"One room, please." Jason said.

She nodded her head and after a few minutes, she removed a key.

"Room twelve, have a good night." she said, handing Jason the key.

"Thanks, Nurse Joy."

We walked towards room twelve and Jason unlocked the door. Michelle claimed the bed closest to the bathroom and flopped onto the bed. I placed my bag down and removed my pajamas, walking to the bathroom to change.

Once we all changed into our pajamas, we laid down in our beds and said good night and went to sleep. Pikachu and Eevee slept soundly on the floor. I rolled onto my side and looked out the window at the stars and silently told my dad, "good night", wherever he was. Hopefully, he was looking up at the same stars in the same sky that I was, thinking about my mom and I.

**Author's Note: After briefly stopping in Saffron City, the kids continue on to Lavender Town where they each catch a Ghost Pokemon. The boys now have an edge against Sabrina and Michelle has a new Pokemon for her contests. Michelle will be competing in that contest in the next chapter. Will she win?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	27. Just a Girl and her Gastly

**PokemonFreak90 - It's Pokemon NG's one year anniversary! After a full year of writing this story, we're still not even halfway through it yet! Thank you to all of you readers and reviewers for sticking with us for this long and we hope that you continue to enjoy our story as much as we've enjoyed writing it.**

**XashXdawnX - Thanks for reviewing our story. Thanks for the support. It's one year and still going.**

**Michelle's POV**

Adam and I were battling with our new Pokemon. I needed to practice and see what Gastly could do, since I was planning to use Gastly in my contest. Since Adam had seven Pokemon with him, he had sent his Squirtle back to the lab in Pallet Town so he could use Haunter.

"Use Night Shade!"

Gastly shot three energy beams towards Haunter. One being a purple beam, and the other two being dark red beams.

"Dodge it!" Adam called. Haunter dodged and I thought of what to do next.

"Hey," a voice said, interrupting our practice. I glanced over to my left and saw Blair.

"Hey, Blair!" I greeted.

Adam and Jason greeted her, too.

"So, are you entering the contest here in Lavender Town?" I asked as Gastly floated over to Haunter.

"No, not this time." she said, walking over. "I'm sitting this one out and just gonna watch it."

"Oh,"

"Yeah. Is this your Gastly?" she asked.

"Yep. It's the newest member of our Pokemon family." I replied with a smile.

"I've never been fond of Ghost types. Bad memory as a kid."

"Well, all three of us have Ghost Pokemon now."

"Cool,"

Blair glanced at her watch for the time. "Well, I'll let you get back to practicing."

I nodded my head.

"Good luck in the contest, Michelle. Can't wait to see how you perform." Blair said, waving as she walked off. "Oh! Bye, Adam, Jason."

"Bye," we called.

I turned back to our Pokemon and Gastly came back to our side.

"Michelle," Adam said to me, "Blair might be watching the contest to see how you perform and how Gastly performs. She hasn't faced Gastly before or seen what Gastly can do. She could be watching your strategy so she can beat you if you use Gastly against her in another contest."

I looked at him for a few moments. "I don't think Blair would do that..." I trailed.

"It happened to my mom or one of her friends before."

"Well, I'll keep my guard up if I use Gastly in Saffron City."

"Okay. Well, let's continue."

"Gladly! Gastly, use Dark Pulse!"

But as we continued, I was unaware that there was something in a nearby tree that was watching me practice...

* * *

><p>I stood backstage in my contest outfit with Gastly's Pokeball in the ball capsule, waiting for the contest to start. This contest was going to be Gastly's debut. Gastly would be my Pokemon for the whole contest.<p>

"What's that smell?" Jason asked, sniffing. Jason wasn't fond of perfume, and I knew that.

"The perfume that I got from Erika in Celadon City." I replied. "I told you that I'd be using it in my next contest."

"It smells good." said Adam. "It suits you. And now you smell great, as well as look great."

"Thanks, Adam."

We talked for a few more minutes, but soon they had to leave to take their seats. I hadn't seen Nikki yet, and the contest was about to start.

"Good afternoon, everyone! It's time for another contest. The contestants will be competing to win the Lavender Town Ribbon! I'm your host, Jillian! Now lets meet our wonderful judges!" Jillian cried.

"We have Shawn Contesta!"

"Happy to be here. Coordinators, I wish you all good luck and look forward to your performances."

"Now, the President of the Pokemon Fan Club, Mr. Tatsu!"

"Another contest! More Pokemon and Coordinators!"

"Lastly, we have our very own Nurse Joy!"

"Good luck to all of you and I look forward to your performances."

"Well, we've met our judges, now lets get this contest underway! Entry one is Nikki!"

That explained why I didn't see her earlier. Nikki ran onto the stage and stopped just before the steps.

"Dratini, curtain!" Nikki cried, tossing her Pokeball. Dratini appeared, surrounded by bubbles.

"Thunder Wave!" The electricity popped the bubbles and water and sparks fell down.

"Now use Twister!" A Twister was now in the air.

"Use Aqua Tail!" Dratini jumped and used Aqua Tail into the Twister, causing water to swirl into it, creating a water cyclone.

"What a great performance!" Jillian cried.

"Now finish it! Use Hyper Beam!" Dratini charged the Hyper Beam and fired it at the Twister, causing it to vanish.

Nikki smiled as the crowd cheered.

"What a wonderful performance. It showed that a lot of time was spent practicing." Shawn said.

"Dratini had a blast!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"Dratini looked lovely performing and it was a unique performance." Nurse Joy said.

Nikki walked backstage and spotted me.

"Hey, good performance." I said.

"Thanks. I hate going first, though." she said.

"You spent a lot of time with that Twister Aqua Tail, right?"

"Yes, too much time."

"There's never too much time spent working on your techniques."

Nikki just shrugged and I noticed that she wasn't in her usual mood.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

Nikki glanced at me. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired." she replied.

I guessed that was the truth, but I couldn't be sure. I know people act different when tired, but she had been like this when we ran into her in Saffron City. Maybe she and Trevor had a fight?

After watching a few more performances, it was my turn. "Next up is Michelle!" Jillian cried.

"Gastly, spotlight!" I cried, spinning and tossing my Pokeball. Gastly appeared, surrounded by a purple smoke.

"Confuse Ray!" I cried. Yellow orbs appeared through the smoke and started to spin, making the smoke vanish and circle around the yellow orbs.

"Use Shadow Ball!" Gastly shot a Shadow Ball and it headed towards the crowd.

"Night Shade!" The beams shot out and hit the Shadow Ball, making sparkles fall as it exploded.

"Wonderful!" Jillian cried.

"A well done performance to show off Gastly." Shawn said.

"Fun!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"Gastly sure did show off its type abilities well." Nurse Joy said.

I walked backstage and Nikki walked over to me.

"Is Gastly new?" she asked.

"Yes,"

"That was a good debut for Gastly."

"Thanks,"

After a few more performances, the first round was over and we all waited to see who would be moving on.

"Now, the coordinators that are moving on."

I had made it and so had Nikki.

"Oh, first one to battle again..." she muttered.

"Good luck, Nikki."

"Thanks,"

"It's time for the first round of our battles. To my left is Oliver, and to my right is Nikki! Five minutes on the clock, and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Empoleon, let's go!" Oliver cried.

Nikki frowned and tossed her Pokeball. "Vulpix, curtain!" she cried.

Now I knew why she had frowned. She had a type disadvantage. But she had speed on her side, if I wasn't mistaken.

"Use Aqua Jet!"

"Fire Spin!"

Throughout the battle, Nikki didn't seem focussed. I knew that something was up. Nikki's points were halfway gone, and Oliver's were barely gone.

"Time's up!" Jillian cried.

"The winner is...Oliver!"

Nikki walked backstage and went to change. I had to go battle now.

"To my right is Grace, and to my left is Michelle! Five minutes on the clock, and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Eevee, dazzle them!" Grace cried.

"Gastly, spotlight!" I cried.

Normal attacks don't affect Ghost Pokemon, so I had a type advantage and Grace frowned at my Gastly.

"No fair..."

"Gastly, use Hypnosis!"

"Eevee, dodge!"

But Eevee couldn't avoid the attack, and fell asleep.

"Use Dark Pulse!" I yelled. After getting hit with the attack, Eevee woke up. While Eevee was sleeping, Grace's points had suffered, since she couldn't do anything.

"Eevee, use Shadow Ball!"

"Night Shade!"

The Shadow Ball approached Gastly, but never touched Gastly, as it collided with Night Shade.

"Time's up!"

"The winner is...Michelle!"

"Way to go, Gastly!" I cried happily.

After two other battles between the other coordinators, it was my turn again. I battled, and easily beat the other coordinator by status affect. It was now the final few minutes of the final battle for the ribbon.

"Gastly, dodge!" I cried. I was facing off against Tyler and his Charmander. Gastly dodged the Flamethrower.

"Use Shadow Ball!"

"Split the Shadow Ball with Metal Claw!"

"Night Shade!" I cried.

"Charmander, no!" Tyler cried.

The Shadow Ball was successfully gone, but the Night Shade came right after it and hit Charmander, knocking it out.

"Time's up!"

"The winner of the Lavender Town Contest is...Michelle and Gastly!" Jillian cried.

I was handed my third ribbon. The Lavender Town ribbon was purple. I walked backstage and changed. Once I was done changing, I made my way to the exit, running into Blair.

"Congrats on winning, Michelle." Blair said.

"Thanks," I said.

"Well, I have to go. I'll be seeing you in the Saffron City Contest, right?"

"You bet!"

"Well, see ya. And congrats again."

Blair walked off and I wondered...did she really watch the contest to see my techniques, like Adam suggested?

I found Adam and Jason outside and Eevee ran over to me.

"Way to go, Michelle." Jason said.

"Thanks," I said as I picked Eevee up.

"You're doing great, Michelle. You have three ribbons now." Adam said.

"Yeah...only two more to go!" I couldn't believe that I had three ribbons now.

Now we were on our way back to Saffron City for another contest and the boys' gym battles. But as we left Lavender Town, we were unaware that we were being followed...

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

A young woman who was in her early thirties walked through the halls of Team Rocket's base. She had black eyes and long, straight purple hair that went down her back, with bangs over her forehead. She had on red lipstick and wore the same attire that all of the Team Rocket Pokemon Hunters wore: a red jumpsuit with a long black coat over it. Her jumpsuit hugged her body, showing off her curves and her D-cup breasts. And like all hunters, her arm cannon was strapped to her arm. This beautiful, but deadly hunter was named Pokemon Hunter Mya.

"Where are you off to?" a voice said, causing her to stop. She looked to her side and saw that it was one of her fellow hunters, Darien.

"To my airship." she replied. "Your father just gave me my next assignment. Hopefully, I'll find some better Pokemon than I did the last time. But I'm more interested in finding those three kids. Like every member of Team Rocket, I want that reward that your father promised to give to the one who captures them."

"Don't be too rough. The black-haired kid with the Pikachu is my nephew, after all."

"Since when did you care what happens to him?"

"I don't. I'm just sticking to the orders. My father said to bring them to him alive, and I'm making sure that happens, so don't you forget it. You can hurt them a little, but don't get too carried away, Mya. My father doesn't like it when people disappoint him. Remember what happened when Oliver disappointed him?"

"Oh, please. You don't seriously think that I'm the same as that idiot, do you? He's all brawn and no brains. And don't think that you're able to intimidate me just because your father is our boss."

Mya then walked away from Darien, continuing on her way to her airship in the hanger.

**Author's Note: So Michelle wins her fourth ribbon with ease, thanks to Gastly. Nikki, meanwhile, seems to be distracted and losing her touch in contests. Now the kids are heading back to Saffron City for Michelle's next contest and Adam and Jason's next gym battle. But they are unaware that they're being followed by someone...or something...**

**Meanwhile, Team Rocket is preparing to send out another one of their Pokemon Hunters. (Note to readers: For those who don't know, "Mya" is pronounced the same as "Maya", it can just be spelled one of two ways.)**

**Why is Nikki doing so poorly in her contests now? What is following the kids as they head back to Saffron City? How will they do in their next contest/gym battles? Will they bump into Team Rocket again?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	28. Cold as Ice

Just a few more days and we would be back in Saffron City. We had been walking all day and the sun was staring to set, casting everything in orange and pink.

The roaring of water was heard as we came to a wooden bridge leading to the other side of the valley. Below was a rushing river.

"We can cross the bridge and find somewhere to camp. That okay with you guys?" I asked.

"Yes, let's hurry 'cause I bet we're all tired and hungry." Michelle said.

"Sounds good. Let's go." Jason said.

We were about to start crossing, when leaves rustled from a nearby tree.

"Who's there? Show yourself!" Jason called out, alarmed. Nothing happened.

I saw Michelle frown at Jason. She decided to take a kinder, more gentle approach. "You can come out. It's okay, we won't hurt you." Michelle called softly.

"Vee! Vee!" Eevee cried.

Another rustle came and then a Pokemon flew out from the leaves. To my surprise, it was a Togetic! I held up my Pokedex to the Togetic.

"Togetic, the Happiness Pokemon and the evolved form of Togepi. Togetic is said to appear only to kindhearted people. When it finds such a person, it is said that it will share its happiness with them and scatter a glowing down called 'joy dust.'"

"Wait...what's a Togetic doing in Kanto? Togepis and Togetics live in Johto, and Togekisses live in Sinnoh." Jason said, slightly confused.

"Well, I think that we're pretty lucky to see it, then." I said.

Togetic was flying around Michelle very happily and joyfully.

"Why is Togetic so happy to see me?" Michelle wondered.

Togetic started to fly above us showing off its different moves.

"What? Is there danger?" Jason asked.

"Does it want to battle?" I wondered.

Michelle was watching Togetic and then her eyes flashed with interest. "Togetic is...it looks as if it's in a contest." she said.

"Tic! Tic!" Togetic cried.

"Wait a second...did you see a contest? Did you see me in my contest back in Lavender Town? Have you been following us?" Michelle asked.

"Togi!"

Michelle was thinking about something. "Were...you following me because you want to be in contests, too? Do you want to be with me to be in my contests?"

"Toe!"

Michelle smiled and said, "I would love to have you come with me, Togetic!"

Togetic was so overjoyed, that it flew at Michelle and hugged her and Michelle happily hugged back. I smiled and then remembered what my Pokedex had said.

"Michelle, Togepi, Togetic, and Togekiss choose only the kindest of people to be their trainers because they can sense what's in their hearts. I would have to agree with Togetic. You're a perfect choice." I told her.

"Wow...you really think so?"

But before I could answer, Togetic flew above Michelle and began to flap its wings very fast. A sparkling dust was scattered from Togetic, which fell down onto Michelle, covering her. This must've been what the Pokedex had called "joy dust."

"Well, I guess that answers my question." Michelle said, looking up. By scattering its joy dust, Togetic had officially shown that it wanted Michelle for its trainer. Michelle smiled and reached for a Pokeball to catch Togetic.

But before she could bring it out, a Hyper Beam shot across the sky, startling all of us, and destroying the bridge. We were trapped...something bad was about to happen. I could feel it.

"Toe!" Togetic cried in alarm.

"There's a Salamence." Jason said, pointing to the sky.

A Salamence was slowly descending to the ground, and on it was a purple-haired woman. As the Salamence landed, three vehicles; Team Rocket vehicles, pulled up behind the hunter. The grunts got out and the woman was now looking at us.

"Well, well. I've been looking for that Togetic for a while, since it escaped before I could catch it. But it looks like I've found something even better: you three!"

I looked at her and realized that I was right. Something bad was happening. She was dressed like Hunter Oliver, with the same red jumpsuit and a long black coat. And then I spotted the cannon. She was a Pokemon Hunter!

"Another Pokemon Hunter working with Team Rocket?! Just how many of you are there, exactly?" I asked.

"There are four of us." she replied. "I believe you've already met Oliver. Unlike him, you won't escape from me so easily." she said, smirking.

She aimed her cannon at Togetic, but Togetic flew away too quickly, causing her shot to miss.

"Go catch that Togetic! Don't let it get away!" she ordered.

"Yes, Hunter Mya!" A few grunts hurried into one of the trucks and sped away.

Before we could react, Mya fired again, turning Jason to stone. She then raised her arm and aimed at Michelle. NO!

"I'm sorry, Michelle! But I have to do this!" I yelled as I pushed her and Eevee off of the cliff and into the rushing river down below. I was hit with the shot from the cannon meant for Michelle.

* * *

><p><strong>Michelle's POV<strong>

I couldn't open my eyes, I was too weak and scared. I was drifting in something cool and then I was on something that was hard. I felt a huge pain in my head, but I couldn't find the strength to open my eyes. What happened? Everything was blank. I could no longer feel the warmth of the sun. It must've been nighttime now.

"Vee...Eevee!"

Something soft nudged my hand and my hand moved like it was being shaken. But I couldn't get my eyes open. Something soft rubbed my cheek and I felt its warmth against my cheek.

"Vee! Vee! Vee...Eevee."

Then I heard crying...I forced my eyes open and forced my body to get into a kneeling position. I was on the shore next to the river. I must have washed up downstream, since the water was calmer. And beside me, looking downwards with tears falling from her eyes...was Eevee.

"Eevee!"

Eevee looked up, hearing my voice, and jumped into my arms, happy to see I was okay.

"I'm so sorry, Eevee. I didn't mean to make you worry." I said, hugging her.

I gasped as I suddenly remembered Adam and Jason and Mya. Adam had pushed me into the river to keep me from being captured. If we had all gotten captured, it would've been the end. He did it so that I could save them...like he did for me when I was captured. I wouldn't let this chance go to waste!

I sighed. "But I don't even know where they are."

"Togi! Togi!" Togetic flew out of the forest and over to me, happy to see that I was okay.

"Togetic! It's good to see you. Good to see that you escaped from Team Rocket again. I need to find Team Rocket's ship, they took my friends. Can you help me?" I asked.

"Toe!" Togetic flew ahead and waited for me. Togetic was going to show me the way. I ran after it, following behind.

_Hang on, guys. I'm coming._

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Mya stood in a room in her ship with Adam, Jason, and Pikachu. Jason and Pikachu were still stone, while she slowly lowered the lever on Adam's dome.

"Froslass, freeze his feet and hands to the wall when he's free." Mya said to her nearby Pokemon. The Ice Beam hit Adam's hands and feet, freezing him to the wall before he could react.

He sharply inhaled from the cold that his hands and feet were feeling, and realized that he was in Mya's ship. He looked at her and boldly said, "If you're planning on torturing me so that I'll answer whatever questions you have, then you can forget it. I won't answer anything." He remembered that Oliver had done just that to Michelle when she was captured.

Mya let out a cruel laugh and said, "Oh, I'm not planning on asking you any questions. This torture is for my own...fun. If Team Rocket wants to question you, so be it. They'll ask you themselves once we get to the base."

"What does your boss want with us?"

She looked at him with a bored expression and said, "I don't know what he wants with you kids. He never told me. But that's his business, not mine. I just follow my orders."

"What did Team Rocket do to my dad?"

"Why do you think Team Rocket had anything to with it, kid?" she asked.

"After having been disbanded for so many years, they reappeared around the same time that my dad vanished."

She laughed once more. "You're smarter than you look. Yes, Team Rocket did have something to do with it. We killed him. He managed to put up a good fight, he beat over a hundred grunts' Pokemon, but his Pokemon grew weak after all the battling. The other hunters and I took care of his team after they were weakened, and then killed him. I'll tell you this, kid. He sure gave us a run for our money. He fought back for as long as he could, but it was four against one. You now know the truth about your dad. He's dead. No one can stop us and our plans now."

She then looked at her Froslass and said, "Froslass, freeze the boy's body, but leave his head alone." The ice slowly covered Adam's body. He began to shiver more and more as the ice engulfed him, and his breathing became faster and sharper.

When his body was completely frozen, Mya looked at him and said, "I think that's enough for now. I wonder how long your body will be able to last in that cold ice? Froslass can freeze you to temperatures as cold as -60 degrees." she said as she left with Froslass. The door closed behind her.

"Guard this door. Don't let anyone in, understand?" she ordered two grunts standing outside the door.

"Yes, ma'am!"

In the room, Adam slowly felt his body going numb from the cold ice.

_Don't take too long, Michelle. I know that you're coming, but I won't last long in this state._

* * *

><p><strong>Michelle's POV<strong>

Togetic lead me to where the ship was at. We were hiding in the bushes seeing what was happening. The trucks were loading back onto the ship. They were going to leave soon! NO!

I noticed a truck slowly approaching the ship. Something told me that they were the ones sent to go after Togetic and were coming back empty-handed.

"Eevee, I need you to return." I said as I tapped her Pokeball against her head. "Togetic, let's go."

I ran over to the truck and got underneath it, holding onto the bottom. Togetic flew under it with me, staying close to the tire to keep her hidden.

Up the ramp, and then metal underneath. The doors opened and the grunts got out. I waited for a few minutes, making sure every grunt was out of the room.

"Okay, Togetic. Come on," I said as I crawled out from under the truck.

I stood up and thought for a moment. I had to find Adam and Jason before this ship took off. I knew that time wasn't on my side. I walked through the halls, checking the doors, ducking out of sight, and then I saw it. The door around the corner had two grunts standing there, guarding it. That was it! I knew that Mya wouldn't have left them unguarded like Oliver did with me.

"Okay...Gastly, use Hypnosis on those two." I said as I released Gastly. Gastly floated to them, slowly vanishing and they fell to the ground, sleeping. I ran around the corner with Togetic flying by my head.

"Thanks, Gastly. Good job," I said, returning it.

I walked into the room and saw Jason and Pikachu as stone statues...and Adam was frozen to the wall! He was barely conscious, his face was pale, and his lips were blue. NOT GOOD!

"Growlithe, hurry and melt the ice!" I cried, releasing Growlithe.

I ran over to Jason and Pikachu, sliding the levers down, releasing them. Jason saw Adam and a look of shock came over his face. Adam was freed from the ice and Jason and I ran over to him.

"Adam...Adam, can you hear us?" Jason asked.

No response. His eyes were almost fully closed and his breathing was very shallow.

"Adam, please. Adam, do you hear us?" I asked.

"Y-yes..." Adam said quietly.

"Adam, try to stay awake. We'll get you out of here."

Jason grabbed one arm and I grabbed the other, about to pull Adam to the door. But at that moment, the door swung open, and standing there was Mya with four grunts.

"There's no way out, kiddies." Mya said. "I was content with returning to base with two of you, instead of wasting my time looking for the third. But it looks like I got lucky and she stumbled into my ship at the last second, trying to rescue her friends."

The door wasn't an option, since they were blocking it. There was no window for us to jump out of like last time, either. We were trapped. A rumble came from below and the ship began to take off.

"Well, tough luck this time. There's no-" Mya started.

Suddenly, a Kadabra dropped from a vent in the ceiling, followed by a figure in a long black cloak.

"Kadabra, use Psychic." the figure ordered. Mya and the grunts were thrown back into the wall behind them, stunning them.

"Kadabra, get these kids and their Pokemon out of here. Use Teleport!"

We disappeared and were now on the ground next to a stream. Up in the night sky, we looked as we saw the ship disappear into the distance.

"Who was that?" Jason asked. "And why did he save us?"

"I don't know..." I wondered for a second. Then I suddenly realized that there were more important things to worry about right now! "Adam!"

Adam was very weak and his body was freezing cold. "We have to help him! Jason, can you go get some wood? We need to make a fire for heat and for food, we can have some hot soup. That will help Adam." I said.

Jason nodded his head and ran off.

I removed my bag and got a blanket. Adam was sitting on the ground with his knees pulled to his chest, shivering uncontrollably and his eyes were drooping.

"Adam, you have stay awake." I said sternly.

I walked over to him and sat next to him. I wrapped the blanket around him and hugged him, with my arms rubbing his back. I was using my body heat to warm him up. Arceus, he was freezing! Jason needed to return, and fast.

"I'm sorry this happened to you. I should've gotten to you sooner." I said softly. Oliver had tortured me with electricity and Mya tortured Adam with ice. Honestly, his was worse. I was hurt, sure. But at least I was still able to move. Adam, on the other hand, was dying right now in my arms!

Adam's eyes were still drooping. I heard him say in a weak voice, "I...I feel so tired..."

"Hey, stay awake. You can't close your eyes, or you might never wake up." I said. He was still really cold. How long had he been frozen? How badly was his body affected?

"Adam, you can't leave us. I can't lose someone else that's close to me. You and Jason are like brothers to me. I already lost my father, I can't lose my brother, too. Jason can't lose his brother, either. Your mom and dad can't lose their son. You're stronger than this." I told him as tears rolled down my eyes. I felt scared and worried. Besides my mom, Adam was the person that I cared about the most.

"Adam, please...you mean more to me than anything in the world...I...I need you." I said between sobs. I then felt a strange feeling inside, something I had never felt before. What it was, I didn't know.

"Please don't cry." I heard Adam say to me. "I don't like seeing my friends and family sad."

Jason returned and dropped the wood close to us and called out Charmeleon, who made a fire. I moved away from Adam, reached into my bag, and removed some soup. After a few minutes, we were all eating, since we hadn't had any supper. I fed Adam since he was too weak to eat on his own.

"Adam, you can't die. Your dad needs you. You're going to find him. What about your dream of being a Pokemon Master?" Jason said.

Jason then got Adam out of his cold clothes and into his pajamas. We talked to Adam for a few hours. By keeping him talking, we knew that he would stay awake. After a while, his body began to feel a little warmer. That's when we finally agreed that he could go to sleep without fear of anything happening to him. We lay on the ground in our sleeping bags with Adam in between Jason and I.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Back on her ship, Mya looked at the grunts lying on the ground, beaten by the cloaked man. He had Teleported away with his Kadabra after beating some of her grunts.

She looked at the grunts and sternly said, "None of this ever happened. As far as the boss knows, we never ran into those kids on our mission, and we never lost them. Don't speak about this to anyone, got it?"

She did not want to suffer the boss's wrath for letting them escape as Oliver had. But she wondered who the mysterious man was and how he was able to sneak aboard her ship.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

I woke up to find myself lying on the ground between Jason and Michelle. I got up and changed before nudging them awake.

They groggily looked at me, but seeing me up, wide awake, and obviously feeling better, they jumped up and hugged me.

"Thank Arceus you're okay, bro." Jason said.

"I'm so glad that you're feeling better." Michelle said.

Pikachu hopped onto my shoulder and rubbed his head against my cheek, happy to see me as well.

"Thanks for saving me, guys."

"You should be thanking Michelle. She's the one that rescued you and I from Mya's ship." Jason said.

I looked at Michelle. "You...saved my life..." I said in amazement.

"Well, you saved mine from Oliver. I guess that makes us even."

I reached out and hugged her. She was surprised, since she's the one who usually hugs me first. But she hugged back after a second. I felt a strange feeling as I hugged her, something I had never felt before. I didn't know what it was, but it was probably just me feeling glad to be alive and together with her and Jason again.

As I let her go, Togetic flew into Michelle's arms and she told me, "I guess you should also thank Togetic. It lead me to Mya's ship."

"Did it now? Well then, thank you, Togetic."

"Toe! Togi!"

Suddenly, Michelle remembered something. "Of course! I promised you yesterday that you could travel with me. With everything that happened, I guess I forgot. Sorry about that, Togetic." Michelle said as she removed a Pokeball.

Togetic touched the Pokeball and was caught.

"Yeah! I got a Togetic!" Michelle cried. "Now what do you say we get dressed, eat some breakfast, and head off to Saffron City?"

**Author's Note: Phew! This chapter was crazy! We had a great time writing it and we hope you enjoy it as much as we did!**

**So it turns out that it was a Togetic that was following the kids from Lavender Town. And now it's part of Michelle's team! Michelle also saved the lives of Adam and Jason from Hunter Mya, just like Adam did for her against Hunter Oliver.**

**Now it's back to Saffron City for the boys' next gym battles and Michelle's next contest. How will the three of them do?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**

**Happy Easter, everyone!**


	29. Haunter vs Kadabra NG

**Author's Note: Once again, we remind our readers that we do not accept any anonymous reviews.**

Breakfast was finally ready and I had just finished filling the last bowl of food for the Pokemon.

"Come on out, it's time to eat." we all called, tossing our Pokeballs.

The Pokemon all appeared and they all looked at Togetic. Togetic had just been caught by Michelle, and aside from Eevee and Pikachu, none of them had seen Togetic before.

"This is our newest member to the family: Togetic." Michelle said to the Pokemon.

"Toe!" Togetic cried, saying hello.

The Pokemon started to eat and we ate our own breakfast, which was sandwiches. Being such a happy, friendly Pokemon, Togetic seemed to get along really well with the others, especially Pikachu.

Once we finished our breakfast and our Pokemon finished theirs, we packed up. It was time to continue to Saffron City. As we walked, I thought about what had happened after Mya had frozen me back on her ship. The two guards...I overheard them talking about something.

"Guys, I remember something. I think it explains what Team Rocket is after and why they've returned." I said as I stopped walking. Jason and Michelle stopped and looked at me.

"The guards that guarded the room I was in, I overheard them talking about something called, 'The Temple of Legends.' I didn't hear very much because I was slipping in and out of consciousness because I was frozen in the ice. I don't know what it is or why they're looking for it, but whatever this temple is, it can't be good. And even if it's supposed to be good, it's not good that Team Rocket is after it. Do you two know anything about it?"

"No, I've never heard of that." said Michelle.

"I don't know that name, but we can look into it when we get to Saffron City." Jason said.

After three more days of walking, we had finally arrived back in Saffron City. It was time for my gym battle. We walked towards the gym, but once there, we were stopped.

"Sorry, Sabrina isn't accepting challengers today. She's having her weekly psychic meditation. Come back tomorrow." a man said to us.

As we left the gym, Jason said, "We can go to the library and look for information on what Team Rocket was looking for. That'll pass some time until tomorrow."

So we were going to be spending some hours in the Saffron City Library. We walked to the library, and once inside, the librarian looked at us.

"Make sure your Pokemon are well-behaved." she said.

"We will, ma'am."

"Where should we look?" Michelle asked.

"The Pokemon History section." I replied.

We split up and looked for books that could possibly have information on the temple. I ran my finger along the spines of the books. I then sighed and shook my head. None of the books seemed to have anything that would give us information about the Temple of Legends.

"Find anything?" Jason asked.

"No. You?"

"Nope, nothing."

Michelle walked over and shook her head. She hadn't found anything, either.

"Well, I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Maybe we can find out more somewhere else." I said.

"How about we train?" Jason asked. "We need our Haunters in top form to beat Sabrina."

I nodded my head and we left the library, heading to the battlefield to practice.

"Haunter, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Haunter, go!" Jason cried, tossing his Pokeball.

"Haunter, use Shadow Ball!" I cried.

"Dodge it and use your own Shadow Ball!" Jason cried.

"Use Shadow Punch!"

* * *

><p>The next morning, we walked towards the gym again. This time, we were going to get to challenge Sabrina. We were all a little nervous, since we remembered how she acted when my dad battled her for his badge.<p>

"Here to challenge the gym?" asked the man from yesterday.

"Yes,"

"Follow me,"

We were lead to the battlefield inside and Sabrina stood at the other end. Sabrina was now in her thirties, about the same age as my dad. She had long black hair with bangs on her forehead, blue eyes, and she was pale. She wore a long-sleeved dress that was red, black leggings, and black boots. Her outfit looked eerily similar to the one she wore when my dad battled her. Despite being taller and older, she didn't look very different from the way my dad had described her to be all those years ago.

"Hello, Adam, Jason, and Michelle." she greeted us by name. How did she know our names?!

"I know your names because I looked into your minds with my psychic powers." she said, answering my question before I even asked it. "Adam and Michelle, I remember your parents from many years ago."

I was a little scared and I knew Michelle was too, since she had changed her grip on Eevee, and Jason seemed slightly edgy. Sure, Sabrina might be different, but how she was before.

Sabrina must've seen our fear, because she gave us a smile and said, "Everything is fine, don't be alarmed." I then knew that she was okay, since my dad had told me that the old Sabrina never smiled.

"I have your father to thank for helping me become myself again." Sabrina said to me.

"I've heard his side of that story, but what's your side?" I asked.

"Your father came here trying to beat me for a gym badge, but he failed. I made him and his friends into dolls, but they escaped. He came back with a Haunter, wanting to beat me."

Sabrina laughed at the memory. "Thanks to Haunter, I was able to become myself again. The Haunter started to do funny, silly things and as hard as I tried, I couldn't help but laugh."

"So laughing helped you?"

"Yes, it reminded me of who I used to be."

"Your psychic powers, are they like Aura?"

"Similar. Psychic powers use energy that comes from the mind. Aura powers use energy that comes from your entire body."

I stepped forward and removed Haunter's Pokeball. Jason and Michelle went to the stands and sat. I released Haunter and looked at Sabrina. "Well, I think it's time we get this battle started. I plan on beating you with the same Pokemon my dad used to beat you." I said.

Sabrina nodded her head. "I can sense that you have your father's spirit, confidence, and determination. I accept your challenge." Sabrina said as she released Kadabra. "We will use one Pokemon each. Whichever Pokemon is left standing is the winner.

"Kadabra, use Psybeam!" Sabrina cried. Kadabra shot a glowing beam of psychic energy.

"Use Shadow Ball to cancel it out!" I cried and Haunter launched a black ball of energy.

The two moves hit one another and for a second I thought the Shadow Ball was going to get thrown back at Haunter.

"Now, Haunter! Use Shadow Punch!" Haunter vanished and Sabrina waited.

"Confusion!" Haunter appeared with Shadow Punch ready, but was stopped by Confusion and slammed into the ground.

"Use Psybeam, Kadabra."

"Haunter, dodge!"

Haunter successfully vanished.

"Shadow Ball!" Haunter appeared behind Kadabra and used Shadow Ball, scoring a direct hit.

"Kadabra, use Psybeam, quickly!"

"Shadow Punch!"

The Psybeam came at Haunter and Haunter used Shadow Punch to deflect it.

"Shadow Ball!" The Shadow Ball flew at Kadabra and hit successfully!

Kadabra was slightly panting and Haunter was, too.

"Kadabra, use Teleport!"

"Haunter, be ready."

Thee was a pause until Sabrina said, "Now, Kadabra! Use Psychic!"

"Lick!"

Kadabra appeared right in front of Haunter and was licked just before it could attack.

"Kad...abra..." Kadabra muttered, slightly stunned.

"Use Shadow Punch to finish it!" Kadabra was struck with the blow and stood still, panting. Then it fell to the ground, defeated.

Sabrina returned her fainted Pokemon.

"Good job, Haunter. Take a rest," I said, returning Haunter.

Sabrina walked over towards me with a dark red cushion in her hands. "Well Adam, you won. I can sense a lot of your father's spirit inside of you. No wonder you were able to win. Here is the Marsh Badge." she said, extending the cushion.

I removed the yellow circle. "Alright! I just got the Marsh Badge!" I cried.

Jason and Michelle joined us.

"Way to go, Adam." Michelle said.

"Good job. Sabrina, I'll be here tomorrow to challenge you." Jason said.

"Looking forward to it, Jason." Sabrina said.

We were about to leave when Sabrina spoke again. "Adam, be careful in your search for your father. I know you have faced many dangers on your quest and I expect that you will face many more in the future."

She must've known about my search from looking into my mind. I stopped slightly and gave a stiff nod. "I will. Thank you, Sabrina."

* * *

><p><strong>Jason's POV<strong>

After eating breakfast, we were heading to the gym so I could challenge Sabrina.

"Good luck," Adam and Michelle said as they walked to the bleachers.

I stopped on my side of the field, waiting. "I challenge you, Sabrina." I said.

"As Gym Leader, I accept." Sabrina said releasing Kadabra.

"Haunter, go!" I cried tossing my Pokeball.

"You have a Haunter like Adam?"

"Yep. Same Pokemon, but not the same battle styles."

"Use Psychic, Kadabra!"

"Haunter, dodge!"

Haunter was successful in dodging.

"Now use Lick!" I cried. Haunter appeared behind Kadabra and used Lick before Sabrina had time to call out anything. Kadabra was slightly stunned. I wanted to try and get this done as soon as possible. It was slightly possible with Lick being the first move used.

"Now use multiple Shadow Balls!" I cried. Thanks to watching Michelle as she practiced different combos, I was able to use one. Who knew coordinating would help me?

Kadabra got hit a few times, before Sabrina commanded Teleport.

"Be ready," I said.

Haunter waited. Kadabra appeared behind Haunter.

"Behind you!" I cried, but too late.

"Confusion!" yelled Sabrina. Haunter was lifted up and slammed into the ground. "Now use Psybeam!" Psybeam hit Haunter as it recovered from being slammed into the ground.

"Haunter, use Shadow Ball!" The Shadow Ball successfully hit Kadabra. "Now use Shadow Punch. Vanish!" Haunter disappeared.

"Kadabra, use Teleport!" commanded Sabrina. Kadabra appeared on my side of the field, and Haunter? I wasn't sure where he was.

"Now!" I cried. Haunter appeared beside Kadabra and slammed its Shadow Punch into Kadabra's face.

"Finish it with Shadow Ball!" Shadow Ball was all it took for Kadabra to faint.

"Way to go, Haunter. Take a rest." I said, returning Haunter.

Sabrina returned Kadabra and walked off only to return with the cushion. "Here is the Marsh Badge. You've earned it." she said.

"Alright, another badge!" I said as I put it into my case.

Adam and Michelle walked over.

"Good job," they said.

"Thank you, Sabrina. Kadabra battled well," I said.

"Both of your Haunters battled well. The moves were well-planned and practiced. Keep up the good work and you will go far."

As we left the gym, Adam looked at Michelle and said, "Now it's your turn, Michelle. Time for you to enter the next contest and win your next ribbon!"

"What Pokemon do you plan on using?" I asked.

"You'll just have to wait and see." she replied.

**Author's Note: Two gym battles in one chapter? We've never done that before!**

**Anyway, the kids have found out a piece of information about Team Rocket's ultimate plan. What does it mean? What is the Temple of Legends?**

**Adam and Jason both win their badges and now it's time for Michelle's next contest in the next chapter. Who will she use? Will she win?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	30. I Wasn't Prepared For This

**Michelle's POV**

"Togetic, spotlight!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Toe!" Togetic cried happily as she appeared.

"Well Togetic, the contest is soon. Are you ready?" I asked.

"Togi! Togi!" Togetic cried happily while spinning in a circle in the air.

Togetic's happy, free spirited mood made me even more excited and happy than normal. I guess what people say about Togetic being able to share its happiness with others was true.

"Okay then, let's practice!"

Adam and Jason were off practicing somewhere else. I was using Togetic for the performance round of the contest, so I didn't need to practice battling with anyone. Just me and my Pokemon for today. As much as I loved being with my friends, it always felt nice to spend time alone with my Pokemon once in a while.

"Alright, Togetic. Let's start this off with Sweet Kiss!" I cried.

"Togetic!" Togetic flew and released hearts from her mouth.

_Hmm...it looks too basic with Togetic just doing Sweet Kiss on its own. Add a twirl and...YES!_

"Togetic, use Sweet Kiss again and twirl upwards!"

"Togi!" Togetic spun upwards, creating an illusion with her speed. It looked like a red ribbon was following Togetic and the ribbon had hearts in it.

"Now use Magical Leaf!"

"Toe!" Togetic flipped so she was directly above the hearts and then shot leaves to hit the hearts.

"Perfect!" I cried.

"Hey!" a voice called. I stopped and turned to see Blair and Nikki walking over.

"Blair! Nikki! Hi there." I said.

"Hi, hi!" Nikki cried. I was glad to see that she was her peppy self again. I decided to ask her why she wasn't herself the last time I saw her.

"Why weren't you your peppy self the last time we met?" I asked Nikki.

"Oh, that. Well, Trevor and I had a fight. But we're okay now." she replied.

"Oh! When did you get Togetic?" Nikki asked, noticing Togetic, who was floating next to me.

"Pretty recently. She's my newest member. Say hi, Togetic."

"Togi! Togetic!" Togetic cried.

"Hi, Togetic!" Nikki cried happily.

"Hey," Blair said.

"Planning to use Togetic in the contest?" Blair asked.

"Yes, Togetic is very excited. It's her contest debut. And trust me when I say that she's been looking forward to this for quite a while." I said, remembering that Togetic had been following me from Lavender Town, wanting to perform after watching me perform in the Lavender Town contest.

"Is Togetic going to battle?" Nikki asked.

I shook my head. "No, Togetic is my appeal round Pokemon. I'm going to use Gastly, since Gastly did so well the last time." I said proudly.

"Well, good luck, Michelle." Blair said to me.

I glanced at Blair and there was a glint in her eyes for a moment, but it vanished.

"Well, see you at the contest. I have to go and practice." Blair said.

"See ya. I gotta practice, too." Nikki said, waving as she backed away.

"See you in the contest!" they cried out to me as they left.

I looked back to Togetic, but then looked back towards where Blair and Nikki had just gone. Adam and Jason were walking back from their training. They walked over to me and Adam looked at me.

"Michelle, be careful. I think Blair's planned something. She's seen Gastly perform and she knows your techniques with Gastly. If you have to battle her, be careful. I think she has a strategy to use against you if she has to face you and Gastly in the contest." Adam warned me. He had said the same thing to me back in Lavender Town when Blair was watching my performance.

"Blair wouldn't do that...that's just going low. I mean, you and Jason see each others' techniques, but you don't use them against one another. You both have different techniques for every battle. I have something different planned. I know better than to use the same strategy twice." I replied.

Adam just nodded his head and I turned back to Togetic.

"Okay, Togetic. Let's continue."

* * *

><p>I stood waiting behind the curtains. In this contest, I was up first. I was scared to go first, but this was Togetic's debut. I'd have to make it wonderful. The first ones up always put on amazing performances.<p>

"Good afternoon, everyone! Time for another wonderful contest! In this contest, the coordinators will be competing to get the Saffron City Ribbon! I'm your host, Jillian! Now let's meet out wonderful judges!" Jillian cried.

"We have Shawn Contesta!"

"Glad to be here. I'm looking forward to what each coordinator has in store for us."

"Next, the President of the Pokemon Fan Club, Mr. Tatsu!"

"Have fun, everyone!"

"And lastly, our very own Nurse Joy!"

"I want to wish everyone good luck and I can't wait to see the performances."

"Well, we've met our wonderful judges. Let's get this contest started. Entry one is...Michelle!" Jillian cried.

I took a breath as the curtains parted. I ran out onto the stage and jumped over the stairs, did a small twirl, and released my Pokeball.

"Togetic, spotlight!" I cried as I landed.

Togetic appeared, surrounded by hearts. "Togi! Togetic!" Togetic cried, ecstatic.

"Oh, wow! A Togetic! Being a rare Pokemon, we don't usually see them on the contest stage. Well folks, we're in for a treat!" Jillian cried.

"Togetic, use Wish!" Sparkles fell over Togetic's body as she flew around happily. The crowd watched in amazement.

"Now Togetic, twirl and use Sweet Kiss!" I cried. Togetic used Sweet Kiss and made the ribbon illusion, just like in practice.

"Now finish with Magical Leaf!"

"Toe!" Togetic cried, flipping directly over the hearts. The leaves hit the hearts, bursting them and causing sparkles to fall.

I curtsied as the crowd gave a loud cheer. Togetic looked at the cheering crowd, taking in the moment, her eyes shining with joy. Her dream to perform in a contest had finally come true! Overcome with emotion, Togetic flew into my arms.

"You were amazing, Togetic!" I cried, hugging her.

"Togi! Togi!"

"Well, this certainly was a great performance to start off the contest. Togetic performed well and had a lot of fun. I can also see that there's a lot of love between you and your Pokemon." Shawn said.

"I agree, Togetic had a blast!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"Togetic performed well and had a lot of fun. It clearly showed in the performance, a really cute performance." Nurse Joy said.

I walked backstage and Nikki ran over to me.

"That was amazing, Michelle! Togetic was so...oh what's the word?" Nikki was at a loss for words.

"Thanks, I'm just happy that Togetic had fun. Togetic's dream came true today." I said, smiling.

"Good performance, Michelle." Blair said from the wall that she was leaning against.

"Thanks, Blair."

Blair just nodded her head. For some reason, I felt like something was off about Blair. Was Adam right? No, Blair couldn't...could she?

Blair did a cute performance with her Buneary. Nikki did very well with Dratini.

While waiting for the results, Adam and Jason came and talked to me.

"Togetic did an awesome job." Jason said.

"Both of you were in perfect sync." Adam said.

"Thanks, guys."

"Now to show the eight coordinators that will be moving on." Jillian said after minutes of waiting.

I looked to the screen. Some girl, some guy, Nikki, some guy, some girl, me, Blair, some guy.

"Yes!" I cried happily.

"Now to show who will be facing off against who." Jillian said.

I looked at the screen in shock. I tore my eyes from the screen and looked at my opponet. I had to battle first.

"Well Michelle, time to see how well Gastly battles." Blair said.

That glint in her eyes was back and my stomach was tightening. Something was defiently up with her, right? Maybe I'm just thinking too hard about everything.

"It's time for our first battle of the second round! To my right is Michelle, and to my left is Blair! Five minutes on the clock and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Gastly, spotlight!" I cried. I know Blair said she had a bad past with Ghost Pokemon, but she seemed unfazed. Blair smirked slightly and removed her Pokeball.

"Umbreon, time to shine!" Blair cried.

Oh no...Ghost Pokemon are weak against Dark types!

"Umbreon, use Quick Attack!"

What was she doing? Normal moves are useless against Ghost Pokemon. "Gastly, get ready to use Shadow Ball."

"Now! Use Faint Attack!" Blair cried.

"Dodge!" I cried.

Now I knew why she had used Quick Attack. She was just getting close to us to use Faint Attack, a Dark type move that would hurt Gastly. The attack landed and Gastly couldn't dodge in time.

"Gast!" Gastly cried.

"Now use Pursuit!" Blair cried. A direct hit yet again, and these moves were super effective!

"Gastly, use Hypnosis!"

"Umbreon, don't allow that to happen! Rest!"

Umbreon went to sleep so Hypnosis did nothing. If only Gastly knew Dream Eater. Then we could do some real damage.

"Gastly, attack Umbreon with Shadow Balls!" I cried. The Shadow Balls hit Umbreon as it slept.

Looking at the points, I flinched on the inside. My points were so low while Blair barely had any missing. Thirty seconds left...

Umbreon then woke up and Blair yelled, "Umbreon, now! Use Assurance!"

"No!" I cried.

Gastly was hit and the buzzer buzzed. It was over.

"The winner is...Blair!" Jillian cried.

I had been beaten...badly. Blair praised her Pokemon and returned it.

"You did your best, rest now." I said, returning Gastly.

I looked at Blair, but she wasn't looking at me. I walked backstage and changed out of my outfit. I walked out and saw Blair leaning against the wall again. Nikki wasn't around so I realized that she must be in her battle right now.

"You know what, Michelle?" Blair said as she pushed herself off of the wall.

"What?" I asked.

"I had this contest all planned out since Lavender Town."

"What do you-"

"I had a feeling that you would use Gastly in this contest. And when you told me yesterday that you would, I was so happy. I had a plan to beat you just in case we met in the battle round. I watched Gastly's battle in Lavender Town and made a plan on how to beat it. Thanks to you showing how Gastly battled, my strategy worked."

I realized that Adam had been right. I didn't believe that Blair would do something like this, but she had!

"Why? Why did you do that? Blair, poor Gastly looked like a fool out there! I couldn't even get attacks on Umbreon!" I cried, becoming angry.

"Michelle, it's called strategy, and being a rival. You have to learn the strategies of your opponents so that you'll know how they perform if you have to face them."

"Yeah? Well not like that!"

I ran out of the room and didn't go to sit with Adam and Jason. Instead, I went to the entrance of the contest hall and sat down against the wall, watching Nikki's battle on the screen. Nikki won, but she lost in the semifinals, and in the final was Blair and some guy named Todd. Umbreon did well against Todd's Wartortle. There was only a minute left and Blair had a huge lead.

"Umbreon, use Faint Attack!" Blair cried. Wartortle fell to the ground, fainted. The contest was over. Blair had won the ribbon.

"And the winner is Blair!"

Blair walked onto the stage and was presented her ribbon.

"Good job to everyone who participated. And congratulations, Blair." Jillian said.

I stood up and walked outside to wait for Adam and Jason. After about five minutes, they walked out and spotted me.

"Where did you go?" Adam asked as Eevee hopped out of his arms and into mine.

"I was in the entrance, watching." I replied.

I saw Blair walk out of the contest hall and my hands formed into fists by my sides. "Can we go?" I asked.

"Yeah, we can go." Jason said.

We started walking but I fell behind. Adam fell in step beside me. Jason glanced behind him and Adam gave a slight nod, indicating to Jason that he wanted to talk with me alone. So Jason went a few paces ahead of us.

"You were right." I said softly.

"Huh?" Adam asked, clearly confused.

"You were right. Right about Blair..."

"She admitted it?"

"Yes, after our battle. I couldn't get her points down. They were barely gone! She made me and Gastly look like we were both weak!" I cried. My vision was starting to blur.

"She said that it was part of being a rival, learning the strategy of her competition! That was her excuse! She..." I felt the tears falling from my eyes.

_Wonderful, Michelle. Your anger and embarrassment has turned to tears. _I thought bitterly.

Adam hugged me and I just cried onto his shoulder. At least he was letting me let it all out. He had been there for me the last time I lost in a contest, which was back in Vermillion City. I felt Jason's arms wrap around me, too. He must've heard me crying and came back.

"Michelle, Blair technically isn't wrong. It isn't unusual for some trainers and coordinators to observe their competition to get a better idea about how to battle them. My dad's done that lots of times in the past. But you should just consider it one more challenge to overcome. It'll push you to your limits and see if you really are prepared and ready to achieve your goal." Adam said to me.

"Adam's right, Michelle. Don't think of this contest as a failure. Think of it as a lesson, a stepping stone on the path to becoming a top coordinator. There will be falls, but you'll just have to pick yourself up, and Adam and I will be here for you to help you do just that. You're a wonderful coordinator so don't let this get you down." Jason added.

"Vee!" Eevee agreed with them.

"Thanks...to all of you. You guys are right." I said as I wiped my face. This was the closest that I had ever felt to the two of them. "I love you guys. You're like brothers to me."

"We love you too, Michelle." Adam replied.

"We sure do. You're like a sister to us." Jason added.

"Now, why don't we get going to Fuchsia City?" Adam asked. "Your next contest is there and so is the next gym."

"Sure. Let's get going right now." I replied.

**Author's Note: So Michelle loses in the contest, despite her best efforts and Togetic's amazing appeal in her contest debut. Luckily, her "brothers" are there to help her stay focused along the way.**

**Next stop, Fuchsia City. Adam and Jason will be going for their sixth badges and Michelle will be going for her fourth ribbon.**

**See what awaits them in Fuchsia City next time on Pokemon NG!**


	31. Black Fire

**Author's Note: Anybody recognize what the real-life reference in the name of this chapter is?**

**Michelle's POV**

It had been seven months since the three of us had started our Pokemon journey and we'd finally reached Fuchsia City. In the time since we'd left Saffron City, we still had no leads about the Temple of Legends, which Team Rocket was looking for.

I'd been practicing a lot since my loss in Saffron City. I had come up with some amazing combos and I couldn't wait to use them in the upcoming contests.

We walked into the Pokemon Center and I instantly spotted the candy cane-ish outfit of Nikki's. I also spotted Trevor, her brother.

"Hey," I greeted as we walked over to them.

"Hi, hi!" Nikki cried.

"When is the next contest, Nikki?" I asked.

"Here and it's tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?!" That gave me very little time to prepare, but with all of the training I had been doing while traveling to get here, I knew I'd be fine.

Trevor then looked down at me and said, "Don't even bother entering the contest. Haven't you embarrassed yourself enough already? Remember your performance the last time? Even my sister did better than you did! It makes sense that a weak coordinator like you would travel with two weak trainers."

I stared at Trevor in shock. He had had some nasty words before for Adam and Jason, but never for me! How could he say something like that?

"I've been training a lot harder since then, and I'm not weak! Neither are Adam or Jason!" I cried.

"Trevor! Do I need to remind you that you lost to-" Nikki started.

"Keep your mouth shut, Nicole." Trevor interrupted, calling Nikki by her real name.

Nikki looked at me. "It's a double performance contest, by the way." she said.

"Thanks,"

Nikki then waved goodbye and she and Trevor went towards the rooms.

"I'm going to go get a room. I don't know about you two, but I'm really tired." Adam said.

"I'm going, too. I'm exhausted." Jason said.

"Alright, see you guys later," I said. "I'm doing some last minute training for tomorrow's contest."

I walked out of the Pokemon Center and walked to the practice fields.

"Come on out, everyone!" I cried as Eevee jumped from my arms.

I looked at all of my Pokemon.

"Okay guys, there's a contest tomorrow. I need two of you for the performance and two of you for the battle round." I explained.

"Togi! Togi!" Togetic cried ecstatically. I knew that Togetic would want to perform for sure.

"Togetic, I'm going to use you for the appeal round."

"Eevee!" Eevee cried.

"You want to partner with Togetic?" I asked.

"Vee!"

Of course! Eevee hadn't been in a contest in a while.

"Okay, then it's settled. Togetic and Eevee for the appeal round." I said, smiling.

I looked at the remaining Pokemon. Gastly was upset after the loss it suffered in Saffron City. Gastly hadn't been acting like itself ever since then.

"Gastly, I'm going to use you again and give you a chance to recoup your loss. Now who could be your partner?"

I thought back to everything I had watched while growing up, all of the double performance contests I had seen, and of course, my idol, Dawn Ketchum. Suddenly, I had an idea!

I remembered Dawn using her Cyndaquil with her Mamoswine and creating a beautiful move. Something called...oh, what was it? Fire Ice? No...oh, yes! It was Flame Ice!

She was able to combine Fire and Ice. Maybe I could find a similar combo with my Fire Pokemon by combining Fire attacks and Ghost attacks!

"Gastly and Growlithe, are you two up for the battle round?" I asked.

"Gas!" Gastly cried.

"Growl! Growlithe." Growlithe said.

I had the perfect idea. Now if it could work, it would be amazing!

"Okay, now lets practice!" I cried.

* * *

><p>It was now the day of the contest. My combo move had worked perfectly and I now had a "secret weapon" up my sleeve. A lot of work had gone into the move, making sure it would work, and it did. I was happy and I was ready. I would redeem myself and so would Gastly.<p>

I walked into the waiting area and I spotted Blair.

"Oh, so you entered?" Blair asked.

"Yes, I entered. I'm ready for you this time!" I said and walked over to Nikki.

"Good afternoon, everyone! It's time for another Pokemon Contest! This contest is a double performance contest, which means twice the dazzling appeals and twice the fierce battles! This is the Fuchsia City Contest and the coordinators will be competing for the Fuchsia City Ribbon! I'm your host, Jillian! Now let's meet our wonderful judges!

"We have Shawn Contesta!"

"I'm always looking forward to double performance contests." Shawn said.

"Next, the President of the Pokemon Fan Club, Mr. Tatsu!"

"Double everything!" he cried.

"And our very own Nurse Joy!"

"Good luck to all. I can't wait to see the wonderful combos." she said.

"Without further ado, let's get this contest started! Entry one, you're up!"

The contest went on and there were many amazing performances. Blair was performing now and I was up after her, followed by Nikki. Blair performed with Buneary and Pachirisu. It was attack of the cuteness!

"Beautiful performance!" Shawn cried.

"Two cute Pokemon and a cute performance to match!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"Adorable! Both Pokemon had fun and they were in perfect sync." Nurse Joy said.

I passed Blair as I made my way to the curtain.

"Weren't they just cute?" she asked.

"They were. Good performance." I replied.

"Next up is Michelle!"

I ran out and spun, throwing my Pokeballs.

"Eevee, Togetic, spotlight!" I cried. They both appeared with bubbles around them.

"Eevee, use Shadow Ball at Togetic!" I cried. Eevee started firing several Shadow Balls at Togetic.

"Togetic, flip! Use Magical Leaf!" Magical Leaf pierced the Shadow Balls, bursting them.

"Now, Togetic! Land on the ground and face the crowd." I said. Togetic landed and waited.

"Sand Attack, Eevee!" Sand covered Togetic.

"Safeguard!" A green glow emerged from the cloud of sand.

"Now, Togetic!" Togetic flew out of the sand, glowing green with specks of sand in the glow. Togetic spun and the performance was over.

I curtsied as the crowd cheered and waited for the judges' opinions.

"What a unique performance!" Shawn cried.

"Outstanding!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"A wonderful trio. A perfect bond between both your Pokemon and yourself." Nurse Joy said.

I walked backstage and passed Nikki, who was on her way out to perform next.

"That was awesome, Michelle!" she cried.

"Thanks. Good luck, Nikki."

"Thanks!"

Nikki performed with Electabuzz and Dratini.

"A great way to show how the moves can be combined." Shawn said.

"Wonderful!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"Lovely performance," Nurse Joy said.

Soon, the eight coordinators who would be moving on were being decided.

"Now, to show the eight coordinators who will be moving onto the second round." Jillian announced.

Some guy, some guy, me, Blair, some girl, Nikki, some guy, and some guy.

"Yes!" I cried.

I had to battle some guy and his Poliwag and Squirtle, which I won against. Nikki didn't beat her opponent, but it was a close call. Blair beat her opponent.

Now it was me, Blair, and two others. Whoever won these matches would go to the finals. I was facing the girl who had beaten Nikki.

I fought until the buzzer went off and I realized it was because both Pokemon on my opponent's team had fainted.

"Moving on to the finals is Michelle!" Jillian cried.

I waited backstage, watching as Blair battled. She was using Roselia and a new Pokemon that she hadn't used before; Beautifly.

"And the coordinator who will be joining Michelle in the final round is...Blair!" Jillian cried.

So I was going to be facing off against Blair again for the second contest in a row. It would be Growlithe and Gastly vs. Roselia and Beautifly.

I made my way to the stage.

"Now it's time for our final round. On my left is Blair, and on my right is Michelle! Five minutes on the clock and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Beautifly! Roselia! Showtime!" Blair cried.

"Gastly and Growlithe, spotlight!" I cried.

"Roselia, use Petal Dance! Beautifly, Silver Wind!" Blair cried.

"Growlithe, use Fire Spin while lying down! Gastly, use Shadow Ball and stay close to Growlithe!"

Growlithe used Fire Spin, just like when the boys and I caught our Ghost Pokemon. I had Adam to thank for showing me how to do that Counter Shield. The Petal Dance was burned away and the Shadow Ball hit Roselia. My Pokemon were hit by Silver Wind, though.

"Now use Night Shade!" I cried. Gastly shot the dark beams at Blair's Pokemon.

"Hyper Beam, quick!"

"Growlithe, use Flamethrower!"

"Beautifly, counter!"

Beautifly flapped its wings and caused the Flamethrower to be blown back. The Night Shade and Hyper Beam fought for dominance before canceling each other out.

"Gastly, Hypnosis and then Dream Eater!" I shouted. Gastly emitted sleep wave from its body, putting Blair's Pokemon in a deep sleep. It then began to drain away their energy as they slept.

Blair was very surprised. "Your Gastly knows Dream Eater?!"

"Yep. It's a new move that I taught Gastly after losing to you the last time we battled. You weren't expecting that move, were you?" I replied confidently.

But the battle wasn't over yet and I knew that Blair wouldn't go down that easily.

* * *

><p>"Less than a minute left and both coordinators are neck and neck!" Jillian cried, later in the battle.<p>

I glanced at the points and the clock quickly. "Alright, it's time for our secret weapon!" I announced.

"Secret weapon?" Blair said with a confused look.

"Gastly! Growlithe! Use Black Fire!" I cried. Gastly used Night Shade and Growlithe used Flamethrower. The two moves merged together, the orange flames became black flames, and they were infused with Ghost type power.

Blair was stumped. She didn't know what to use to try and counter THAT combo! The move struck her Pokemon and the buzzer sounded.

"The winner is...Michelle!"

I looked at the points on the screen. Black Fire took away a ton of Blair's points!

"Way to go! Our combo worked perfectly!" I cried, praising my Pokemon.

"Here is the Fuchsia City Ribbon."

I took the ribbon and smiled. My fourth ribbon. I was closer than ever to having five and getting into the Grand Festival.

I walked backstage and Blair stood, waiting for me.

"Michelle..." she said.

"That was a good battle." I said.

"Yes, it was. Your Black Fire was amazing. I thought I knew the tricks you had up your sleeve, but wow. I never knew Fire and Ghost moves could do that. You proved me wrong. You really deserved this win. See you later."

"Thanks, and bye."

Blair walked out and I went to change. Then I walked out of the contest hall to find Adam and Jason waiting.

"Way to go, Michelle. That last attack combo was incredible." Jason said.

"Awesome job, Michelle! You and your Pokemon did really good." Adam said.

"Thanks, guys. Only one more ribbon and I can enter the Grand Festival!"

"You're lucky. Adam and I still have to get three more badges to enter the Pokemon League." said Jason.

"Michelle!" I turned around and saw Nikki running over. "Just thought I would let you know where the next contest is being held." she said.

"Thanks, where is it?"

"My hometown! Neon Town!"

"Awesome! Thanks, Nikki."

"Mhmm. No problem. Congrats on winning. See ya later!" Nikki ran off.

"Well, it's time for your gym battles now." I said, facing Adam and Jason.

"Yeah. Hey Adam, who's the Gym Leader?" Jason asked.

"It used to be Koga, but he's a member of the Elite Four now. So I don't know who it is." Adam replied.

"Well, we'll find out when we go to the gym." I said.

**Author's Note: Back-to-back contest chapters! We hope you liked them. Michelle now has four ribbons, only one away from being able to enter the Grand Festival.**

**Now it's time for Adam and Jason's next gym battles. But who is the gym leader, since Koga is now a member of the Elite Four? If you have a guess, let us know! You should know who it is if you've played the Pokemon video games.**

**And don't forget to let us know if you recognize the reference with the chapter's title!**

**Stay tuned for the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	32. Strike of the Ninja

**Author's Note: Hmm. Nobody was able to notice the reference in the title of the last chapter. Maybe you'll recognize the reference in this one.**

We walked towards the gym. Michelle was talking to us, telling a story that my dad had told me, the story about his battle in Fuchsia City. But Michelle was telling it from what Misty had experienced.

"My mom never liked Psyduck and wanted to trade it. Anyways, Team Rocket came and interfered with Ash's gym battle. Psyduck released itself from its Pokeball, like it always does."

I laughed softly as I remembered my dad telling me about how Misty's Psyduck always got out of its Pokeball.

"Psyduck tried to attack, but didn't do anything to Team Rocket's Pokemon. After a while, my mom learned that there were Psychic moves that Psyduck could use. Psyduck was also able to get the goo that Team Rocket threw on the other Pokemon off with Confusion. Psyduck was able to freeze Team Rocket with Disable and send them blasting off. She was offered two trades for Psyduck afterwards and denied both."

We continued on for a little while longer until we came to the gym. It looked like an old Asian palace.

"Be careful, this gym has booby traps everywhere." I said as I pushed the door opened. My dad had told me about all of the times he and the others had fallen into the traps in the gym.

"Wow, so this is the gym?" Michelle asked.

"Yep, but be careful. There are a lot of traps." I said.

We walked a little ways in.

"So how do we get to the gym leader?" Jason asked.

"I'm not really sure. There's a lot of hallways in here."

A yelp came and I jerked my head to my left.

"Um...where's Michelle?" I asked. She had disappeared!

"She was just here..." Jason muttered.

"The wall!" I cried suddenly.

Jason walked over to the wall and knocked on it. It was hollow.

"Yeah, it's a revolving wall." he said as he hit it.

It spun and opened to lead into another room. Michelle sat on the ground. She had apparently leaned against the wall, causing it to spin.

"That really hurt. I didn't know the walls turned like that." she muttered as she stood up.

"Yeah, we should continue on." I said.

We walked through the halls and suddenly, I was hit by electricity.

"AH!" I cried.

"It's a Voltorb!" Michelle cried.

I sat up and looked at the Voltorb.

"I say we get away from this and quickly. Voltorbs can explode if provoked, and that Voltorb looks mad." Jason said as he started backing up.

We continued on our way down a different hallway and we soon walked into an invisible wall. Well, actually Michelle was the one who walked into the invisible wall.

"Ouch!" Michelle said, hurting her face and nose.

Jason turned and walked back the way we came, but ran into another invisible wall!

"We're trapped. We can't go forwards or backwards." he said, rubbing his head.

"Well, we ran into a hidden hallway behind a wall once already. Maybe we can get out if there's a hallway behind that wall." Michelle said, pointing with one hand and holding her hurt nose with the other.

Jason walked over to the wall and looked out the small opening.

"Nope there's only-"

The wall swung down and Jason was going with it.

"Jason!"

Jason was dangling at the bottom of the fake wall. The wall had opened to reveal a long fall if you let go!

"Guys, come on. Help me up." he said.

"Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip." I said as I released Bulbasaur.

I picked up Bulbasaur so Jason could be lifted up. Michelle grabbed his hand and pulled him back into the room.

"Thanks. This has to be the craziest gym." he said.

"And the most dangerous one as well." I added.

"Where do we go? The other two ways are all blocked by invisible walls." said Michelle.

I returned Bulbasaur and looked at the fourth and final wall. "This wall must lead into the room where the Gym Leader is. There's nowhere else for us to go." I said.

Jason hit the wall and it swung open to reveal a room. We walked into the room, but it was empty. There were no other exits and there was a battlefield. This was the Gym Leader room, but why was it empty? Where was the gym leader?

"Pi!" Pikachu cried suddenly.

"AH!"

Around a dozen ninja stars were coming right at us out nowhere! Jason and Michelle ducked and covered their heads. Suddenly, I felt something rush through my body and then everything went blank. I slowly opened my eyes after a few seconds.

Michelle and Jason gasped as the looked up and I stared in shock at what was in front of me. My hands were extended and a blue Aura shield was in front of us. The ninja stars lay on the ground in front of it. The shield had deflected them.

"How did you do that?" Michelle asked in amazement.

Jason remained quiet, too shocked to speak.

"I...I don't know." I replied, looking at my hands as the shield disappeared. I was even more surprised than they were! My dad had told me stories about how he had had some run-ins with Aura in the past on his journey, but he would've never been able to do this!

I decided to explain what had happened as best as I could from what I could piece together. "As I saw the ninja stars flying towards us, my mind went blank all of a sudden. It's like my body was moving on its own and I had no control over it. I don't know how I created that shield to protect us, but I do know for certain that it was Aura that I just used. I didn't know that Aura could be used like that!"

"Maybe it's a special kind of Aura. Maybe it's only triggered when you're in danger?" Jason wondered.

"I must say, it's rare to see a person being able to block my ninja stars. And I've never seen it done with Aura before." A figure emerged from the shadows, revealing who was talking. "I am Janine, the Gym Leader of Fuchsia City and daughter of Koga, the ninja master." Janine greeted.

Janine looked to be in her early thirties, around my mom's age. She had purple hair that was pulled into a ponytail that was spiked outward behind her head. She had sharp, dark eyes. She wore a black tank top with black yoga pants, a long purple cape was tied around her neck and going down her back, a purple belt was around her waist, and purple armbands were around her lower arms.

"Sorry if I startled you with my ninja stars. It was a test to see if your guard was up and if you were ready to challenge me. If fact, all of the traps and hidden hallways in this gym are there to test challengers to see if they're worthy to challenge me for a badge. Since you all made it here to the battlefield safely, you all passed."

She then looked at me and said, "I must say, I've never seen someone use Aura like that. An impressive way to block my stars. After doing that, you've proven to be the right kind of trainer for a good battle."

"I'm here to challenge you too, Janine." Jason said.

She looked at Jason and gave a nod. "Not a problem. I have six Pokemon. I'll battle you both in back-to-back three-on-three Pokemon battles for the badges. Fair?"

"Fine by me."

I nodded my head agreeing.

"So, who's first?"

"I'll go first." I said.

"Alright. Your name?"

"Adam,"

"Well Adam, as Gym Leader, I accept your challenge."

"Venomoth, go!" Janine cried.

"Venom! Venomoth!"

"Charmeleon, let's show 'em!" I cried.

"Char!"

"You may go first, Adam." Janine said.

"Charmeleon, use Flamethrower!" I cried.

"Venomoth, use Psybeam!"

The two moves fought for dominance and created smoke as they exploded.

"Poison Fang!"

I tried to find Venomoth in the smoke, but couldn't.

"Dodge!" But it was too late. Venomoth appeared from the smoke and landed the hit on Charmeleon. I had to be careful. If my Pokemon became poisoned, I'd be done for! My dad had found that out in Unova when he battled the Poison type gym leader, Roxie.

"Now use Silver Wind, Venomoth!"

"Charmeleon, use your Counter Shield!"

Charmeleon used Flamethrower while spinning and was able to keep the Silver Wind from hitting it.

"Now use Metal Claw!" Charmeleon ran towards Venomoth and jumped up, striking with Metal Claw.

"Veno!"

"Now use Fire Fang!"

"Don't let it touch you! Use Supersonic to stop it!"

Charmeleon was stopped in its tracks, thanks to the ear-piercing sound.

"Charmeleon, use Fire Spin!" I cried. Charmeleon fought through the pain and used Fire Spin, landing a direct hit and stopping Supersonic. I knew that did some major damage, since Bug Pokemon are weak against Fire.

"Now use Fire Fang!" While Venomoth was still recovering, I could most likely get another hit in. Charmeleon ran towards Venomoth and used Fire Fang.

"Dodge, Venomoth!" Venomoth couldn't dodge in time and got hit with Fire Fang. Fire Fang also caused Venomoth to become burned.

"Veno! Venomoth!" Venomoth cried as the flames engulfed its body from the status effect.

"Use Psybeam!"

"Flamethrower!"

The two moves fought, but Flamethrower started to overpower the Psybeam and slammed into Venomoth.

"Veno...moth..." Venomoth said, fainting.

"Venomoth is unable to battle! Charmeleon wins!"

Janine removed her Pokeball. "You did well, Venomoth. Rest now. That was a great first battle, Adam. But it's just getting started." Janine said as she removed her next Pokeball.

"Weezing, go!" Janine cried.

"Weezing!"

"Still good to go, Charmeleon?" I asked.

"Char! Charmeleon!"

"Great! Charmeleon, use Fire Spin!"

"Dodge it! Use Sludge!" Weezing avoided it and shot a blast of poisonous goo towards Charmeleon.

"Dodge it, Charmeleon!" The Sludge was shot at Charmeleon before he could dodge. Charmeleon became poisoned!

"Use Double Hit!"

"Dodge!"

Charmeleon couldn't dodge in time and took the attack.

"Charmeleon..." Charmeleon fell to the ground as the poison sapped the last ounce of strength rom its body.

"Good job, Charmeleon. Rest now." I said as I returned my fainted Pokemon.

"Charmeleon is unable to battle! Weezing wins!"

I looked at Pikachu. He had plenty of experience battling Weezings in the past, since Team Rocket had one. "You ready, Pikachu?" I asked.

"Pi! Pika!" Pikachu cried, taking the field.

"Weezing, use Sludge!"

"Dodge! Then use Volt Tackle!"

The sludge missed Pikachu and Pikachu ran towards Weezing, his body covered by electricity.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried, slamming into Weezing.

"Now use Thunderbolt!" Pikachu jumped up and released a Thunderbolt before Weezing could recover from the Volt Tackle.

"Weezing, Smokescreen!" Weezing forced itself up and covered the field in smoke.

"Be ready, Pikachu." I said.

"Poison Gas! Now!" The smoke started to lift and the purple gas was drifting towards Pikachu.

"Counter Shield!" Pikachu started to spin and the Thunderbolt kept the Poison Gas away.

"Double Hit!"

"Quick Attack!"

Pikachu dodged the first Double Hit, but couldn't dodge the second one. Pikachu stood up and looked at Weezing, waiting for my next command.

"Iron Tail!"

"Use Sludge when Pikachu is close."

Pikachu started running towards Weezing and his tail became iron.

"Now, Weezing!"

"Pikachu, dodge!"

Pikachu ran under Weezing, avoiding the Sludge, and jumped up, slamming into Weezing from behind.

"Wheeze..." Weezing fell to the ground, fainted.

"Weezing is unable to battle! Pikachu wins!"

Janine returned her Weezing and removed her final Pokemon.

"I must say Adam, you've done well so far. Time to see how you do against my final Pokemon. Arbok, go!"

"Arbok!"

"Use Quick Attack, Pikachu!"

"Dodge it!"

Arbok dodged the Quick Attack.

"Wrap, quickly!"

"Dodge, Pikachu!" I cried.

Pikachu couldn't dodge in time and was trapped by Arbok's long body.

"Pi...Pika!" Pikachu struggled to get free, but couldn't.

"Use Thunderbolt!" Pikachu used Thunderbolt, but Arbok still kept its grip, fighting through the pain. She had trained Arbok to be able to keep its grip, even when attacked. This one was gonna be tough.

"Ice Fang, Arbok!"

Arbok quickly released Pikachu, but the Ice Fang attack came too quickly. Ice slowly started to cover Pikachu's body and he was soon engulfed, frozen solid.

"No! Pikachu!"

"Due to status effect, Pikachu is able to battle. Arbok is the winner."

I picked up Pikachu and brought him to my side. I then released Charmeleon, who had recovered a little. He used his fire to melt the ice. Once the ice melted ad Pikachu was freed, Pikachu looked at me.

"You did good, Pikachu. Rest now. Thanks, Charmeleon." I said as I returned my Fire Pokemon.

"I wasn't expecting that. You trained Arbok well." I said.

"Naturally. Thank you, Adam."

I removed my last Pokeball. "Pidgeotto, let's show 'em!" I cried.

"Pidgeotto!" it cried.

"Pidgeotto, use Gust!" Arbok couldn't dodge the move and took the full force of the attack.

"Use Poison Sting!" Arbok shot a flurry of poisonous needles from its mouth.

"Dodge!" Pidgeotto dodged the attack in time.

"Use Wing Attack!"

"Dodge it!"

Arbok moved at the right time and dodged the attack.

"Use Ice Fang!"

"Dodge, Pidgeotto!"

Arbok got into the air and bit one of the wings. Ice attacks were super-effective against Flying Pokemon!

"Use Wing Attack to get it off!" But Arbok let go before the move could happen. The ice was stuck on Pidgeotto's wing and it couldn't fly!

"Pidgeotto, you can still fight. I know you can! You can do it!"

"Arbok-"

Suddenly, Pidgeotto started to glow. The ice on its wing shattered as Pidgeotto's from changed. The light disappeared and standing there was Pidgeot. Pidgeotto had evolved!

"Way to go! You evolved!" I cried. "Use Wing Attack!"

"Dodge, Arbok!" Arbok didn't dodge in time and got hit.

"Wow! Pidgeot is a lot faster than it was before! Now use Gust!"

Arbok was covered in scratches and was breathing heavily.

"Use Poison Sting!"

"Flap your wings to keep it away!"

The Poison Sting was blown away to the side.

"Now use Aerial Ace!" Pidgeot zoomed towards Arbok, collided with it, and Arbok was breathing heavily afterwards.

"Ar...Arbok..." Arbok fell to the ground, defeated.

"Arbok is unable to battle! Pidgeot wins! The winner is the challenger, Adam!"

"Way to go, Pidgeot!" I yelled.

I removed my Pokedex as Janine returned Arbok. "Pidgeot, the Bird Pokemon and the evolved form of Pidgeotto. It can fly at twice the speed of sound and at an altitude of nearly one mile. By flapping its wings with all its might, Pidgeot can create a gust of wind powerful enough to bend tall trees."

"I owe my badge to you. Rest now," I said as I returned Pidgeot.

Janine walked over to me with a cushion in her hands. "Well Adam, you beat me. I present you the Soul Badge." Janine said.

I removed the badge. "Thank you, Janine."

Another badge won. Only two more to go.

**Author's Note: What an eventful chapter! The kids overcome the dangerous traps of the Fuchsia Gym, Adam discovers that he has Aura power, wins his sixth badge, and his Pidgeotto evolves into Pidgeot!**

**Stay tuned for Jason's gym battle with Janine next time on Pokemon NG!**


	33. Mark of the Ninja

**Author's Note: Okay, nobody got the reference in the title of the last two chapters? Let's try one last time and see if you can recognize the reference in this chapter's title.**

**Jason's POV**

Adam had beaten Janine and his Pidgeotto had evolved into Pidgeot. It was my turn now.

"Fearow, go!" I cried.

"Fearow!"

"Ariados, go!" she shouted.

"Ari!"

"You go first, Jason."

"Fearow, use Drill Peck!"

"Dodge, then use Pin Missile!"

Ariados successfully dodged Fearow's attack and launched a barrage of white needles towards it.

"Dodge, Fearow!"

"Fearow!" Fearow cried as the Pin Missile hit. It couldn't dodge in time.

"Now use Poison Sting!"

"Flap your wings to keep it away from you."

The Poison Sting was blown away by the powerful wind.

"Now use Aerial Ace!" I cried. Fearow flew towards Ariados and landed a direct hit before Janine could command Ariados to do anything.

"Okay Fearow, use Whirlwind!" Ariados was pushed back by the mighty winds.

"Stand your ground, Ariados! Use Pin Missile once again!"

I had to think of a way to stop Pin Missile. What could I use?

"Use Drill Peck!" I cried. Fearow's beak grew and glowed white as it spun rapidly and flew towards the Pin Missile. The moves hit one another and both were equal in power. But slowly, Fearow was being pushed back. The Pin Missile overpowered Fearow and sent it backwards, slightly dazing it.

"Poison Jab!" Janine cried. Fearow couldn't get poisoned! If it did, it would be game over! Status problems on a Flying type were the worst in my opinion, since they were in the air and would fall to the ground.

"Use Agility and then Aerial Ace!" I cried. Thankfully, all of the training we had done had allowed Fearow to learn Agility. Fearow successfully dodged Poison Jab and spun around, heading towards Ariados at a faster speed.

"Ari!" Ariados cried as it got hit from behind by Aerial Ace. Ariados still stood, breathing heavily and its body covered in scratches.

"Fearow..." I started, but stopped as Ariados fell to the ground.

"Ariados is unable to battle! Fearow wins!"

Janine returned her Ariados and removed her next Pokemon. "A good first battle. Time to see how you do against my next Pokemon; Muk!" Janine said as she tossed the Pokeball.

I knew that Adam's dad had a Muk that was very...loving, I guess you could say, towards people. But this Muk looked like it was all business.

"Fearow, use Aerial Ace!"

"Muk, use Sludge Bomb!"

Fearow flew towards Muk and when Fearow got close enough, Muk used Sludge Bomb. The globs of brown sludge hit Fearow, causing it to fall towards the ground. Aerial Ace had been stopped. Janine had come up with a way for Muk to avoid being hit, since Muk wasn't very fast.

"Sludge Wave!" Fearow was still recovering from being knocked out of the air and I couldn't give a command in time. The wave of sludge hit Fearow and when it stopped, Fearow had become poisoned.

"Fearow!" Fearow cried as the poison did its job.

Fearow fell towards the ground and landed on the field and fainted as the poison finished off the last of its strength.

"Fearow is unable to battle! Muk wins!"

"Rest now, Fearow. You did well." I said as I returned it and removed my next Pokeball.

"Impressive strategy to use for Muk to have it be able to avoid fast moves." I said, enlarging the Pokeball.

"Thank you, Jason."

"Graveler, go!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

I hadn't used Graveler in a battle against anyone before. But I'd practiced with Graveler, preparing for this gym battle. Graveler knew some good moves and training it with the elements outdoors helped a lot. I also realized that both Pokemon were slow-moving Pokemon. Muks and Gravelers don't move very fast in a battle.

I noticed that Janine frowned slightly, knowing she was at a disadvantage. Poison Pokemon are weak against Ground attacks.

"Muk, use Sludge Bomb!"

"Dodge and use Rollout!"

Graveler dodged the attack and went speeding towards Muk, its body spinning rapidly as it rolled. Graveler slammed into Muk, who was sent backwards with the force.

"Muk, use Body Slam!"

"Graveler, stand your ground. You can take this!" I said.

Graveler took the hit, taking little damage. Normal attacks aren't very effective against Rock Pokemon.

"Use Stone Edge!" I cried. Rocks slowly started to rise from the ground, flew towards Muk, and hit it, sending Muk flying in the air.

"Muk!" Muk cried in pain. Muk fell to the ground and was still able to fight, but was covered in scratches and breathing heavily.

"Use Sludge Bomb!" Janine cried. The brown globs flew at Graveler and hit it before I had time to do anything. When the attack stopped, I saw that Graveler was poisoned!

"Muk..." Muk said, fainting. It had used its last bit of energy to launch that final attack.

"Muk is unable to battle! Graveler wins!"

Janine returned Muk and removed her final Pokemon. "Golbat, go!" Janine cried.

"Use Rock Blast!" I yelled.

"Dodge it! Use Screech!" she yelled.

As Rock Blast happened, Golbat dodged the first rock and used Screech, stopping Rock Blast from continuing. I winced from the loud noise.

"Venoshock!" Janine cried. Screech stopped, but Venoshock came too quickly. Graveler cried out as the poisonous liquid covered it and then the poison took its toll. Venoshock's power is doubled if the opposing Pokemon is already poisoned.

"Grav..." Graveler fell to the ground, fainted.

"A job well done. Rest for now." I said as I returned Graveler and removed my final Pokeball.

"Charmeleon, go!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Char! Char!"

"Use Acrobatics!" Janine called to Golbat.

"Charmeleon, counter!" I cried quickly.

Charmeleon used Flamethrower and spun to create a counter-shield, keeping Golbat away.

"Now use Metal Claw!"

"Use Screech to stop it!"

The ear-piercing sound made Charmeleon stop the attack.

"Acrobatics!"

"Dodge!"

Charmeleon went to dodge, but got hit. The attack was just too fast. I started to worry. This was my last Pokemon and things were not going well for me at that moment.

"Poison Fang!"

"Flamethrower!"

Charmeleon stood up and quickly launched the flames from his mouth at Golbat, but Golbat dodged and bit Charmeleon.

"Char!" Charmeleon cried out in pain.

"Use Fire Fang to get Golbat off of you!" I said, noticing that Golbat wasn't releasing Charmeleon from its jaws. Charmeleon bit Golbat, who cried out and released Charmeleon, flying away.

"Venoshock!"

"Flamethrower!"

The two moves collided and fought for dominance.

"Come on, Charmeleon." I said softly.

Charmeleon's fire was starting to be forced backwards.

"Charmeleon, you can do it! You were my first Pokemon, you're my strongest Pokemon, so you can't lose now!" I yelled, encouraging my partner.

Hearing my voice, Charmeleon cried out suddenly as the attack stopped and he became covered in a bright white glow. Charmeleon's body grew in size and wings grew out of his back. When the light faded, it revealed...Charizard!

"Charizard! I...I can't believe it!" I was in complete shock.

I wasn't sure if Charizard had learned any new moves since it evolved, so I simply said, "Do it, Charizard!" I watched as Charizard used Flare Blitz and Golbat fell to the ground, fainted.

"Golbat is unable to battle! Charizard wins! The winner is the challenger, Jason!"

Janine returned Golbat. I removed my Pokedex to record Charizard's data.

"Charizard, the Flame Pokemon and the evolved form of Charmeleon. Charizard's powerful fire attacks can melt nearly anything, including boulders."

"Thank you, Charizard. Take a rest now." I said as I returned my fully evolved Pokemon.

Janine walked over to me with the cushion in her hands. "You battled bravely and honorably. I present you with the Soul Badge. You've earned it." Janine said, extending the cushion.

"Thank you, Janine." I said, taking the badge.

I looked at it and nodded. Another badge down and another step closer to the League.

**Normal POV**

"I must say, Janine, I've never seen you lose back-to-back gym battles against your challengers." said a voice that came from the shadows behind Janine.

The four of them looked and saw a man walk out into the light. The man looked to be in his late fifties to early sixties. He had spiked hair that was mostly grey, but still showed a bit of its original black color. His face had some wrinkles, showing the man's age, but he had the same sharp, dark eyes that Janine had. He wore a dark blue ninja outfit with a red belt around his waist with a long red cape that was tied around his neck, exactly the same as the purple cape Janine wore. Black armbands went around his wrists and black boots were on his feet.

Adam and the others recognized this man as Koga, the ninja master, one of Kanto's Elite Four, and former gym leader of the Fuchsia City gym.

Seeing the man, Janine knelt down on one knee in front of him, since ninjas always kneel before their master or teacher and Koga had been his daughter's teacher during her ninja training when she was younger. "Father! I did not know that you were there. I was so focused on my two battles that I didn't sense you nearby. Please forgive me for my losses at the hands of these challengers." she said, humbly apologizing.

"Rise," Koga said to his daughter, "No need to apologize. No gym leader wins all of their battles, myself included." Janine stood up to face her father as he continued. "I remember my time here as gym leader. I battled those boys' fathers back-to-back and lost to each of them, too."

"Really? Our dads?" Jason asked.

"Yes," Koga replied, facing Jason, "I battled your father, Gary, and he won his badge. A few days later, I battled Master Ketchum - before he became Pokemon Master - and he defeated me as well."

"I need to know something. The only way into this room is through the hidden door that the kids came in through. So how did you get in here, father? There are no other doors leading outside." said Janine.

"Have you forgotten that I'm the one who designed the layout of this gym when it was built all those years ago? I know the location of every trap and the location of each hallway and passageway. There are some passageways that not even you know about, Janine." Koga answered with a smirk on his face.

"So what are you doing back here in Fuchsia City?" Michelle asked Koga.

"The other members of the Elite Four and myself are traveling across Kanto and Johto to spread the news about an upcoming Pokemon tournament called the Master Tournament. Other members of the Elite Four in other regions are doing the same. The tournament is open to all trainers who have managed to win in the Pokemon League of any region. The winner of this tournament will be declared the new Pokemon Master." said Koga.

"Stop it!" Adam yelled all of a sudden. "You don't need a tournament! You don't need a new Pokemon Master because you already have one! My dad is the Pokemon Master and he's still alive! I know he is!"

"He has been missing for eight months. If he isn't found in four months, alive or dead, we'll need a new Pokemon Master. Besides, the evidence found at the scene of his disappearance suggests death as well. You know what happened in that forest, it was all over the news." Janine said, believing that Ash was dead.

Adam decided to take a risk. He decided to tell Koga about Team Rocket and how they were probably behind his father's disappearance. He knew that Koga probably wouldn't believe him, seeing how he tried to tell Officer Jenny in Cerulean City and she didn't believe him, but if one of the Elite Four thought that Ash had a chance of being alive, Adam knew they would try everything to find him.

He decided not to tell Koga about what Mya had said to him when he was captured and held aboard her ship. Hunter Mya had told Adam that Team Rocket had attacked and killed Ash. Adam hadn't even told Jason and Michelle what Mya had said to him. He decided to keep that to himself.

"Koga, my dad is alive and I know what might have happened to him." said Adam. "My friends and I have run into Team Rocket on our journey."

"Team Rocket?" Koga said with a confused look on his face. "I remember them. Two of their members attacked my gym the day your father battled me for his badge. Didn't they disband when your father, the Elite Four, and I attacked and destroyed their headquarters?"

"Yes, but apparently, they've recently gotten back together and it happened around the time my dad disappeared. This can't be a coincidence. They also mentioned something about finding the 'Temple of Legends.' Whatever they want with that place, it can't be good."

After considering everything that Adam had said, Koga looked at him and said, "I think you kids should leave now. Don't worry, you won't run into any traps on your way out."

Adam, Jason, and Michelle left the room and exited the gym. It looked like Adam had failed to convince someone yet again.

After they left, only Koga and Janine were left in the room. Janine looked at her father and asked him, "Was what the boy said true, father?"

"His tone of voice was very calm and level. His eyes were staring directly at me. He seemed very serious. I don't think he was lying." As a ninja master, Koga had heightened senses of hearing and eyesight, so he could pick up on hints in Adam's conversation. "I think I need to tell the other members of the Elite Four about this."

**Author's Note: Another eventful chapter, huh? Jason wins his sixth badge, his Charmeleon evolves into Charizard, Koga of the Elite Four is revealed and it seems that he might believe Adam's story! Things appear to be looking better for our heroes.**

**Where are the kids heading to next? What will Koga say to the Elite Four?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	34. Eevee's Evolution

**Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait, but here's the next chapter! Judging by the title of this chapter, which Pokemon do YOU think Eevee will evolve into?**

I pushed another low-hanging branch out of my way. Jason and Michelle were following me and I knew they were confused. We were off of the route to Neon Town and in the middle of the forest. They had no idea what I was doing! I was the only one who knew where we were going.

"What are you doing?" Jason asked. "Why did we go off the path?"

"Because I want to show you two something that my dad told me about in one of his stories." I replied.

"What is it?" Michelle asked.

"Something amazing."

I stopped at a clearing in the middle of the forest and looked around with a confused look on my face. I knew I had the location right...or I thought I did.

"Adam, is this a joke?" Jason asked.

"Are we lost?" Michelle asked.

"No...I know this is the right place, but where are they?" I wondered to myself.

Now Jason and Michelle were even more confused! "Where are who?" they asked.

"Pi!" Pikachu cried, suddenly realizing that he had been here before with my dad on his Kanto journey. Pikachu now knew why I had led everyone here.

Jumping from my shoulder and onto the ground, he ran into the middle of the clearing and called out into the silence, "Pika! Pika pi!"

Rustling came from the bushes around us and suddenly, Pichus and Pikachus revealed themselves from the bushes and trees. A whole group was looking at us with interest.

"Pika! Pika! Pika pi!" a few Pikachus cried happily. They recognized my dad's Pikachu from the last time he was there.

I saw that Jason and Michelle were both shocked.

"Wow...this is amazing. I've never seen so many Pikachus and Pichus in one place before." Jason said.

"They're so cute!" Michelle cried.

"See? I told you it was amazing. This place isn't known to anyone except my dad, Brock, and Misty when they came here all those years ago. It's that well-hidden." I said.

We released our Pokemon to allow the Pikachus and Pichus to play with them. We were going to camp here for the night. I sat watching as our Pokemon played with all of the wild Pikachus and Pichus.

"My mom never mentioned this place to me when I asked about her journeys with your dad." Michelle said to me.

"My dad mentioned it and I'm glad that he decided against his choice that he had made." I said.

"What choice was that?" she asked.

"When he first came here, he saw how happy his Pikachu was, being around all of these other Pikachus. He decided to put Pikachu's feelings before his own and decided to leave him here to live happily with the other Pikachus in this forest."

"That must've been really hard on your dad."

"It was. But it showed just how compassionate and understanding he was, being able to place Pikachu's happiness before his own like that."

"So what happened?" Michelle seemed to be very interested in what I was saying.

"Pikachu refused to stay in the forest and chose to stay with my dad. Even all of the other Pikachus supported Pikachu's decision. They were cheering for my dad and Pikachu as they were reunited." I said, finishing the story.

"Wow, that was an emotional, heartfelt story."

I still couldn't believe that so few people knew about this place, only the three of us, my dad, and his two friends. But I guessed it was a good thing it was mainly unknown. I knew that the Pikachus and Pichus didn't like humans, like when my dad and his friends met them for the first time. But after my dad and his friends saved them from Team Rocket, they trusted them enough. I didn't think it would be a good idea if a lot of people knew about the Pikachu Forest. If they did, the Pikachus would be no more. With so many of them living here, people would come and catch them all, leaving none behind.

I looked at all of the Pokemon playing and smiled. It was good to see all of the Pokemon having fun. I noticed that there was one Pichu that stuck out to me. This particular Pichu was slightly smaller, maybe it had only recently hatched from its egg?

We ate breakfast the next morning, which happened to be some apples that we had gathered from the trees, and then we would be back on our way. After we finished our breakfast, we packed up, ready to leave.

"Well, that's everything." Jason said as he pulled his backpack onto his back.

Michelle adjusted her bag and looked at the Pikachus and Pichus. We said goodbye to our new friends and started on our way. Little did we know that we had a follower...

* * *

><p>After walking for a few days, we were finally at our destination; Stone Town. Stone Town was at the base of Evolution Mountain.<p>

"Evolution Mountain is mined for stones that can allow your Pokemon to evolve." I said.

Jason noticed a sign and walked over to it. "It says here that there's a party going on at a mansion where the Eevee Brothers live." he said.

"How about we check it out?" Michelle asked. Jason and I nodded our heads in agreement.

We headed towards the mansion and saw that the party was in the backyard. There was a fountain in the yard and many tables spread out with stones on them. There were many people and their Pokemon around, all chatting.

I noticed that three guys were approaching us. They all looked to be around forty years old and they all looked similar to one another, except their hair colors were different; blue, orange, and red.

"Welcome, I'm Rainer," the blue-head said.

"Name's Sparky," the orange-head said.

"Pyro," the red-head said.

"We're the Eevee Brothers. Welcome to the party. Do you have any Pokemon that can evolve with stones?"

"No," Jason said.

"I have my dad's Pikachu." I said.

Michelle released Growlithe, Poliwhirl, and Togetic. Eevee jumped down to join them.

I noticed that Sparky bumped Rainer and Pyro and motioned with his head.

"You have an Eevee?!" Rainer cried.

Michelle stepped back nervously. "Uh...yeah. Eevee's my partner." she replied.

"You should evolve Eevee into Flareon. Flareon is the best out of all the Eevee evolutions!" Pyro said.

"Don't listen to him. Vaporeon is the way to go!" Rainer said.

"No, Jolteon is the greatest!" Sparky said.

"We have the stones that you can use to evolve all of your Pokemon." they said, holding out four stones. A Thunder stone, Water stone, Fire stone, and a Shiny stone (to evolve Togetic).

"I can't evolve Pikachu. Pikachu is my dad's. It's not my decision to make." I said.

Michelle looked at the stones and then to her Pokemon. "I'm not making this decision. You get to decide for yourselves. I'll be glad to be the trainer of you all, no matter what Pokemon you are."

Poliwhirl turned away from the stones.

"You don't want to evolve?" Michelle asked, wanting to make sure.

"Poliwhirl."

Michelle returned Poliwhirl.

"Togetic! Togi." Togetic said, shaking it's head.

Michelle returned Togetic.

"Growl...Growlithe." Growlithe said, looking at Michelle.

"You want to evolve?" she asked.

Growlithe nodded its head.

"That's perfectly fine with me." Michelle removed a Fire stone from the table and held it towards Growlithe. Growlithe glowed and grew in size and when the glow died down, there stood Arcanine.

"Congratulations, your Growlithe evolved into Arcanine." Pyro said.

Michelle then looked at Eevee. "Eevee, do you want to evolve?" Michelle asked, kneeling down to Eevee's level. "I'll be fine with any choice you make, Eevee. It is your choice, not mine."

"Vee..." Eevee trailed, uncertain about what to do.

"Are those your Pokemon?" I asked, motioning to the Flareon, Jolteon, and Vaporeon that were approaching.

"Yes, these are our beloved Pokemon." Rainer said.

"Eevee would be a lot stronger if it were to evolve. Evolution is a big jump to winning battles." Pyro said.

Michelle's eyebrows knitted together. She was thinking hard about this.

"Winning battles comes a lot easier if your Eevee has evolved into one of these." Rainer said.

"Thunder stone for Jolteon, who has a strong electric attack." Sparky said.

"Water stone for Vaporeon, who can blend with water." Rainer said.

"Fire stone for Flareon, who has a deadly burning fire." Pyro said.

Michelle looked at the Eevee brothers. "I'm not forcing Eevee to evolve against her will, no matter how much you pressure me. It'll be my Pokemon's choice, not mine."

"Eevee..." Eevee trailed, looking at Michelle. Michelle smiled gently and rubbed Eevee's head.

"This is a big decision, Eevee. Whatever choice you make will be a good one. If you want to evolve, it would change your type altogether and influence the way you perform in contests. Eevee, if you want to do this you would also have to be in your Pokeball from now on, since you would be too big for me to carry." Michelle said as she removed the three stones from the table.

She knelt in front of Eevee and placed the stones on the ground. "I'm not forcing you. If you don't want to evolve, that's fine. This is your choice, Eevee."

Eevee looked at Michelle and then to the stones. Eevee walked to the middle stone, which was a Thunder stone, and touched it. A light shone and Eevee grew taller and her fur changed dramatically. When the light faded, there stood a Jolteon.

"Congratulations, your Eevee has evolved into Jolteon." Sparky said.

Michelle faced Arcanine and Jolteon. "I'm proud of you both." she said as she hugged Arcanine and petted Jolteon's head. Michelle then looked at me and asked, "Adam, can you scan them with your Pokedex? I need to know what their new moves are."

"Sure, Michelle."

"Arcanine, the Legendary Pokemon and the evolved form of Growlithe. Arcanine is known for its bravery and fierce loyalty. Its proud and regal appearance has captivated people for centuries. Growlithe evolves into Arcanine from the use of a Fire stone."

I moved the Pokedex and scanned Jolteon.

"Jolteon, the Lightning Pokemon and an evolved form of Eevee. When angered or frightened, the hairs on Jolteon's body become like needles that are fired at its opponents like a barrage of missiles. It absorbs charged atoms and can produce 10,000 volts of electricity."

"Thanks," Michelle said to me.

"Good job once again. Now return," Michelle said as she removed two Pokeballs. Michelle gained two new Pokemon in one day that would do well for her in contests.

We left the mansion later and it was strange to see Michelle without Eevee in her arms or on her head anymore.

"This is weird, I'm gonna have to get used to this." she said with a bit of remorse.

"Hey, now the only one who doesn't have an Electric Pokemon is you, Jason." I said suddenly.

"Huh...that's right. Maybe I'll catch one next...?" he replied.

"So where are we heading now?" Jason asked.

"Neon Town, where my next contest is. It's time to leave Stone Town and head to Neon Town." Michelle answered.

But as we left Stone Town and started on our way, we heard something.

"What was that?" I asked.

We turned around and saw a Pichu running towards us.

"Is that one of the Pichus from the forest?" Michelle asked.

"I think it is." Jason said.

The Pichu was in front of us now and had stopped in front of me.

"Pi! Pi! Pichu! Chu!" Pichu cried excitedly.

I looked at the Pichu. "You want to come on my journey with me, right?" I asked.

"Pi! Pichu!" Pichu cried.

I smiled and nodded. "Welcome to the family, Pichu. Join Pikachu on my other shoulder."

Pichu happily climbed onto my other shoulder and rubbed against my cheek.

"Chu!" Pichu cried happily.

I was glad to see that this Pichu was happy. I noticed that it was the Pichu that was slightly smaller than the other Pichus. Now that I thought about it, the Pichu did stay close to me yesterday.

"Well, let's go." I said.

We started walking again. I now had my very own Electric Pokemon and I was going to allow Pichu to stay on my shoulder, just like my dad's Pikachu so I didn't use a Pokeball to capture Pichu. Besides, he would be stuck inside it since I already had six Pokemon with me and one back at the lab in Pallet Town. So technically, Pichu was still a wild Pokemon, but I would capture him later.

**Author's Note: So after traveling through the Pikachu Forest and stopping at Stone Town, Adam gains a Pichu and Michelle evolves Growlithe and Eevee.**

**How many of you guessed that it would be Jolteon? Be honest.**

**Be sure to stay tuned for the next chapter where Michelle will be battling in the Neon Town contest. Will she win? How will her two new Pokemon perform?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	35. Conferences, Criminals, and Contests

**Author's Note: In Season Two of the Pokemon anime, in the episode "The Mandarin Island Miss Match", Ash and the group ran into Lorelei of the Elite Four, except she was called "Prima" instead. Since we are mainly trying to follow the anime, for this story, Prima will be Lorelei's false name (or an alias), a name that everybody knows her as and calls her, except the Elite four, who know her real name.**

**Also, because of Agatha's old age around the time that Ash met her when he was younger, she is deceased in this story and her granddaughter, Karen (an Elite Four member from the Gold/Silver/Crystal video games), has taken her place in the Elite Four. We are aware that the two of them are not related, but we thought that it would be an interesting touch for the story.**

**With that said, let the chapter begin!**

**Normal POV**

The Elite Four sat around a table. Lance, the Kanto Champion, sat at the head of the table. Lance was now in his forties. His red hair was still spiked in its usual way, but it was shorter now and his yellow eyes had become slightly darker. He wore a dark blue jacket and pants to match with orange stripes on the front and at his wrists. His black cape was wrapped around him and on his feet were black boots with orange stripes.

Sitting to Lance's right was Karen, who specialized in Dark type Pokemon. Karen was in her thirties and had joined the Elite Four a few years ago, after the death of her grandmother, Agatha, who was a former member of the Elite Four. Karen's light blue hair was down to her mid back. She wore a yellow tank top, white knee-length shorts, and yellow heels.

Next to Karen was Lorelei, but almost everyone in the world knew Lorelei only by her alias, Prima. Lorelei was in her early fifties now, but looked like she was still a young woman, barely forty years old. Her red hair was pulled into a ponytail and her glasses framed her red eyes. She wore an open half jacket - which was blue - over a red top with a black skirt and black heels.

Sitting to Lance's left was Bruno. Bruno was now in his late fifties. His hair was now mostly gray, but black could still be seen. He was wearing white karate gi pants with a black belt around his waist and a white karate gi jacket on. Next to Bruno was Koga.

"So Koga, why did you request the meeting?" Lance asked.

"Well, I've been informed by a reliable source that Team Rocket is possibly back together again and may have had something to do with Ash's disappearance a few months ago. He did, after all, disappear around the same time that Team Rocket re-emerged. I was also told that Team Rocket is searching for something called the "Temple of Legends", whatever that is." Koga explained.

"There's no way that Team Rocket could be back. It simply isn't possible. How could they reform when their leader hasn't had any contact to anyone in years?" said Lorelei.

"Well, I think it could be possible. Who knows? Team Rocket could have others who are willing to do anything to get revenge. Team Rocket may be back." Bruno said.

"I don't exactly know what to believe. I find it doubtful that they could be back, but there's a part of me that believes it could happen. Also, I believe the theory about Team Rocket having something to do with Ash's disappearance. After all, he has had many run-ins with them in the past." said Karen.

Lance was quiet, listening to what each member had said. Finally, after the other four had given their thoughts, he spoke. "We have no information or leads on Team Rocket, but if they are indeed back, we need to be prepared. We need to find the Temple of Legends before Team Rocket does, because whatever they want with it, it can't be good. Karen, I want you to look into the Temple of Legends, search the archives, the history records, find out its location, what it is, and what it does."

"Yes, Lance." Karen said.

"We need to alert the police force about this as well. We need to get the word out to every cop in Kanto, tell them to remain on alert for anything suspicious that might be related to Team Rocket." Lorelei suggested. "I'll take care of that."

"Good thinking, Lorelei." Lance agreed. "It seems that we may not have to find a new Pokemon Master after all...if he's alive, that is."

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

I never thought that I would ever be this hot and tired. If anything, I was beyond thirsty. Neon Town...why did we have to go through A DESERT to get to it?! I don't think I'd ever sweated as much as I had today! The sun was high in the sky and to make matters worse, there wasn't a cloud close enough to the sun to offer us any shade. Even Pikachu and Pichu were sweating and Jason and Michelle almost looked like they were ready to collapse!

As we climbed to the top of another sandy hill, I looked up and spotted the tall buildings. Neon Town was just over this hill! After about ten minutes, we were entering the Pokemon Center.

"One room, please." I said in a dry, raspy voice as I placed my Pokeballs into the tray. Jason and Michelle dropped their Pokemon off, too.

We walked to the drink machine and got some water, greedily drinking it down. Once we finished, Michelle faced us and said, "I don't know about you two, but I'm going to go and get cleaned up."

Michelle walked off towards the showers. Jason and I decided to go, too. After all, we had been sweating all day and our clothes were sticking to our bodies. We all met up again after we were done and went to get our Pokemon. Pikachu and Pichu were finishing their water as we approached the front desk.

Standing there at the front desk were Nikki and Trevor. Nikki turned slightly and saw us. She smiled and waved. "Hi, hi!" she cried happily.

"Hey,"

"Oh Michelle, as I told you after our last contest, the next contest will be held here. It's in three days." Nikki said.

"Really?" Michelle asked.

Nikki nodded and she looked to where Pichu was.

"Umm, where's your Eevee? And what's with the Pichu?" she asked, tilting her head.

"Pichu is Adam's newest Pokemon. Eevee evolved and stays in her Pokeball now. Growlithe evolved, too."

"Really? What-" Nikki started.

"Just because your Pokemon have evolved, doesn't mean that you're any stronger or that you're going to win. Your Pokemon may have more power, but you need to control that power in order to win a battle. And I'm willing to bet that you have no control over those new Pokemon. After all, how many battles have they been used in?" Trevor said, cutting Nikki off.

"That's what I thought." Trevor said when Michelle didn't answer him.

Michelle looked embarrassed by what Trevor had said, because she knew that he was right. Jolteon and Arcanine hadn't been in any battles since evolving. But I bet she had a plan. After all, she still had time to practice with them before the contest.

Michelle looked at Nikki. "You're from here, right?" she asked.

"Yes, Neon Town is where we live! Hey, how would you three like to come and see our house and stay for supper?" she asked.

"What? No, Nikki. Mom and dad don't want to be bothered by others, especially people they don't know." Trevor said.

"Our parents won't mind. In fact, I know that they'll be thrilled to meet some of the friends that we've made on our journey."

"Sure," said Michelle.

"Yay!"

Trevor sighed and muttered a sarcastic 'great', looking annoyed.

"Come on!" Nikki cried.

We followed the siblings through town. After a little while, we stopped in front of a two story house that was an off-white color with a wooden door. Nikki lead us into the house and it looked very welcoming. Wooden floors, light walls, and music was heard. A staircase was off to the side of the hall.

"Mom? Dad?" Nikki called.

A clatter was heard and a woman who looked to be in her thirties appeared. She had dark red hair that was curled loosely, dark pink eyes, and she was tanned. She wore a black tee with white shorts. A man appeared behind her, looking to be in his thirties as well. He had blonde hair that was cut in a crew cut, dark green eyes, and he was tanned. He wore jeans and a white tank top.

"Oh, you're back!" the woman cried, running and hugging Nikki and Trevor. Nikki hugged back and Trevor just stood there. The man walked up and hugged Nikki and ruffled Trevor's hair.

The group followed the parents into the living room, which was very homey. There was a black couch, black chairs, and a table. A television was hanging on the wall.

"Well, make yourself at home."

Trevor walked off to his room and a door was heard closing. I guessed that he wasn't in the mood to talk to us.

"Oh, mom, dad, this is Adam Ketchum, Jason Oak, and Michelle Waterflower." Michelle said.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Alice, and this is my husband, Markus." Alice greeted.

"It's nice to meet you." we said, bowing our heads.

"Can they stay for supper?" Nikki asked.

"Of course! So what's happened since you and Trevor left on your journey?"

Nikki explained that she and Trevor had been traveling around. He had been doing his gym battles and she had been doing her contests.

"We met Michelle, Adam, and Jason one day when they walked up to us when we were having a practice battle. Trevor...he didn't like them. He still doesn't. He insults them and he's rude to them." Nikki explained.

Alice sighed and Markus looked sad.

"He hasn't changed a bit. Well, I suppose since he's not here at home, he has to pick on other people instead." Markus said.

Nikki saw that we were confused, so she said, "Trevor wasn't always like the way that he is now. He was nice...before that terrible day."

"What happened?" I asked.

Alice sighed and looked at us. "It happened two years ago, when Trevor was eight. He had a friend named Valerie...they were best friends, very close. One day, Valerie and Trevor wanted some snacks. Since the store was just a little ways away, we let them go by themselves." she said, frowning.

"From what Trevor told us, he decided to take a shortcut through an alley to get to the store. But the alleys here aren't straight. This one was a twisting alley and they got lost. All of a sudden, a man with long blonde hair jumped from the shadows with a club and attacked them." said Markus.

"The man pushed Trevor to the ground and grabbed Valerie, trying to take her away, but Trevor saw them. He tried to fight the man, but he hit Trevor across his head with his club. The man left Trevor in the alley unconscious and dragged Valerie away.

"When Trevor woke up, he was in the hospital. He was fine, other than having a skull fracture. The police asked him questions about what had happened to him and he talked about the kidnaping. It turned out that the blonde-haired man was a wanted criminal who had been on the loose in Neon Town for many months, having committed many crimes. He was facing charges for theft, kidnaping, murder, and rape."

I saw Michelle shift in her chair, looking sad. Nikki was frowning and staring at her hands.

"Valerie was missing for a while. A few weeks later...her body was found just outside of town. She had been stabbed to death. Trevor took it the hardest when he found out that Valerie was gone...something inside him changed that day. He became a cold and angry person.

"To this day...the murderer...was never caught. Nobody knows what happened to him. He was never seen in Neon Town again after that kidnaping."

* * *

><p><strong>Michelle's POV<strong>

Three days had passed since we arrived in Neon Town. Adam, Jason, and I had spent those days training and preparing. Adam and Pikachu trained Pichu in how to use its electric attacks in battle, Jason had trained his Charizard to control its amazing power a little better, and I had practiced with Jolteon and Arcanine, getting them ready for their first contest since evolving.

Now it was the day of the contest. Time to see if my training would pay off. I stood backstage in my contest outfit with Adam and Jason. I spotted Nikki in her contest dress. She was with her parents, who were talking to her.

"Good luck today." Jason said, giving me a hug.

"Yeah, good luck. One more ribbon is all you need." Adam said, giving me a hug, too.

"Thanks, guys. You'd better go before the contest starts." I said, giving a smile.

They nodded and walked off. Nikki hugged her parents as they left.

"Hi, hi! Guess what?" Nikki cried as she stopped in front of me.

"Hey, Nikki! What is it?" I asked.

"I have four ribbons, going for my fifth one today." she said, revealing her four ribbons.

"Really? I have four ribbons, too." I said.

"Well, I wish both of us the best of luck. We'll get our fifth ribbon and meet each other in the Grand Festival."

"You know it!"

"Good afternoon, everyone! I'm Jillian, here to welcome you to our Neon Town contest! Now let's meet our wonderful judges!" Jillian cried.

"We have Shawn Contesta!"

"Glad to be here and I can't wait to see what's in store today." Shawn said.

"Next, we have the President of the Pokemon Fan Club, Mr. Tatsu!"

"This is going to be exciting!" he cried.

"Lastly, we have our very own Nurse Joy!"

"I'm happy to be here and I wish all of the coordinators good luck." she said.

"Well, you've met our wonderful judges. It's now time to meet the coordinators! Entry number one, you're up!" Jillian cried.

The contest continued on and it came to my turn.

"Good luck!" Nikki called as I walked off.

"Thanks,"

"Next up is Michelle!" Jillian announced.

I ran out and jumped down the steps. "Jolteon, showtime!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball. Jolteon appeared, surrounded by bubbles.

"Use Thunder!" I cried. The electricity hit the bubbles, causing them to pop and water rained down.

"Jolteon enters with a shocking technique to show off it's power!"

"Now, Jolteon! Use Quick Attack!" Jolteon sped towards the wall.

"Jump and use Thundershock!" Jolteon jumped up, flipped in midair, and used the attack, sending electricity across the stage in a spiral pattern.

"A wonderful performance." Shawn said.

"Jolteon had a blast!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"You both showed a strong bond and the amount of training put into this was very evident." Nurse Joy said.

I walked backstage and saw Nikki. "Hey, when do you go on?" I asked.

"I'm on after a few more people." Nikki replied. "Great job, by the way. Jolteon did great for its first performance."

"Thanks,"

The contest went on and it was soon time for Nikki to perform.

"And now, the next coordinator, from right here in Neon Town, please welcome Nikki!" Jillian announced.

The crowd cheered loudly, obviously excited that one of their own hometown coordinators was in this contest. After all, she was their resident Top-Coordinator-in-the-making.

Nikki ran out and twirled, tossing her Pokeball. "Bulbasaur, showtime!" Nikki cried.

Bulbasaur? I didn't know that she had a Bulbasaur. Either Bulbasaur was newly caught or I just hadn't seen it in a contest. Nikki had been in a couple of contests that I hadn't entered, so maybe Bulbasaur was used in those before?

"Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf, then use Vine Whip!" Nikki cried. Leaves shot out and Bulbasaur hit the leaves with its vines.

"Now use Synthesis!"

The crowd cheered loudly when the performance was over. Nikki walked backstage and over to me.

"Good performance, you really got the crowd on your side! I didn't know that you had a Bulbasaur." I said.

"Yeah, Bulbasaur is fairly new. I've been practicing with him for a while and today was his debut."

"And now it's time to show the eight coordinators who will be moving on to the battle round."

Nikki and I both made it into the next round. I was going up against a girl named Tia and Nikki was going up against a guy named Nate.

"Hey Michelle, make sure you make it to the final round." Nikki said.

"I will. You make sure that you do, too." I said as I walked to the stage, since I was first.

"To my right is Michelle and to my left is Tia. Five minutes on the clock, and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Arcanine, spotlight!" I cried.

Tia frowned and tossed her Pokeball. "Bellsprout, go!" she cried.

"Use Flamethrower!" I cried.

"Dodge it!"

After only two minutes into the battle, the buzzer went off, since Bellsprout had fainted. It was an easy battle, mainly due to the fact that I had a type advantage.

"To my right is Nate and to my left is Nikki! Five minutes on the clock, and begin!"

"Eevee, showtime!" Nate cried.

"Gastly, curtain!" Nikki cried.

I was shocked. I hadn't seen Nikki use Gastly since the time when we first encountered her and Trevor in their training battle just outside of Cerulean City. Nikki ended up winning the battle.

Later on, it was the finals and it was Nikki and I facing off against each another. We both needed one last ribbon to enter the Grand Festival, but only one of us would walk away with that ribbon today!

"It's time for the final battle! To my right is Michelle and to my left is Nikki! Five minutes on the clock, and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Arcanine, spotlight!" I cried.

"Gastly, curtain!" Nikki cried.

"Use Flamethrower!"

"Shadow Ball!"

The two moves collided with one another and fought for dominance before they canceled each other out.

"Gastly, use Night Shade!"

"Use Extreme Speed!"

"That's not going to do any damage. Normal attacks have no effect on Ghost Pokemon." Nikki said.

"I know...but I'm not using it to attack!" I was using it to dodge and get close for my next attack!

"Fire Fang, Arcanine!" I cried.

* * *

><p>After a few minutes, it was almost the end of the battle.<p>

"Gastly, use Hypnosis!" Nikki cried.

"No!" I cried.

Arcanine was put to sleep and then the buzzer went off.

"Time's up! The winner is...Nikki!" Jillian cried. The crowd erupted into cheers for their resident coordinator.

Nikki looked at me and I smiled back at her. I then returned Arcanine and walked across the stage to her.

"Great battle, Nikki. Now go and get your final ribbon. You've earned it." I said, holding my hand out.

"Thanks, Michelle. You and Arcanine put up a great fight." Nikki said, shaking my hand.

"Nikki, we understand that this is your fifth ribbon. You can now compete in the Grand Festival." Shawn said.

"Yes, it is. I'm glad that my final ribbon was won in a contest here in my hometown in front of my friends and family." Nikki said.

"Well, the best of luck to you."

"Thank you,"

Backstage, Nikki's parents were congratulating her on winning and being able to go to the Grand Festival. Even Trevor sounded happy for her. I overheard her saying that she wanted to stay one more day at home before leaving to continue traveling with her brother since he still hadn't collected all of his gym badges yet.

Once we said goodbye to Nikki and her family, we were on our way. "Well, we're leaving. Congrats on winning, Nikki." Jason said.

"Thanks,"

"Don't worry, I'll see you in the Grand Festival, Nikki. There are still a few more contests to be held before the Grand Festival, so I still have a chance to win my fifth ribbon." I said, bowing.

Adam said goodbye to Nikki and her parents. Then he looked at Trevor, who was standing by himself. Adam approached him. "I know why you act the way you do, Trevor. You lost your best friend two years ago." he said.

Trevor looked at him. "How did you know?"

"Your parents told us."

"I lost my best friend that day because I couldn't protect her from that man. I was too weak. I hate the weak, and weak trainers and coordinators, too. I swore to myself that when I became a trainer, I would become as strong as possible so that nothing bad like that would ever happen to me again. If only I knew where that man was right now..."

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Outside of Neon Town, a very familiar-looking ship was approaching. A blonde-haired man dressed in the usual Pokemon Hunter attire stood in the bridge, looking out of the window.

"Land here and start harvesting any Pokemon you find." he said.

"Yes, sir!"

The man smiled a cold smile. "It's been a while since I was last here. Two years, in fact." he muttered.

**Author's Note: So the Elite Four hold a conference to hear Koga's warning about Team Rocket that Adam warned him about in Fuchsia City. What will happen now that they are aware of the coming danger? What will their investigation uncover?**

**Meanwhile, Adam and the gang learn the truth about Trevor and why he acts the way he does. Michelle's first contest with Jolteon and Arcanine ends in defeat and Nikki wins her final ribbon. But Michelle still has time to win her final ribbon, since there are more contests still to be held!**

**But who is this man that appears to be another Pokemon Hunter working for Team Rocket? What connection does he have to Neon Town?**

**Find out the answer to all of these questions and more in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	36. Nikki's Peril

**WARNING: This chapter contains suggestive content that may offend some readers. Read this chapter at your own discretion.**

**You have been warned.**

It had been two days since we left Neon Town. We were now in a forest, stopping to have lunch. Since we didn't really want to cook anything, we decided on sandwiches for lunch. We then cleaned up and packed up, ready to continue on.

"Return," we said as we returned our Pokemon. Pikachu and Pichu hopped onto my shoulders.

Then there was a rustle in the bushes. After a moment, Nikki and Trevor appeared from the bushes. They had left Neon Town the day after us, so how had they caught up when we had an entire extra day of traveling under our belts?

"How did you catch up to us?" I asked.

Nikki explained to us, "We're traveling faster so Trevor can get all of his badges. I have all of my ribbons, so we can go faster now. He's in a hurry." Nikki suddenly jumped up in the air for a moment. "How about we all travel together for a while?" she asked.

"Sure,"

"Whatever..." Trevor muttered.

We started walking, with Trevor keeping his distance from us. Little did we know that we were being watched and followed and would be in for a big surprise when we got out of the forest.

* * *

><p>After walking for a few hours, we were finally out of the forest. But we stopped right in our tracks as we came out of the trees and into the clearing. Right in front of us was a Pokemon Hunter's ship and in front of it was a row of Team Rocket trucks and grunts.<p>

We turned around, trying to escape back into the safety of the forest, but a few more grunts jumped out of the trees, blocking our escape. They had been the ones secretly following us and telling the others back at the ship where we were heading! We had walked right into a trap!

We turned back around to the front to see the line of grunts stepping aside. The Pokemon Hunter walked out from among the grunts, dressed in the usual Pokemon Hunter outfit; a red jumpsuit with a long black coat over it and an arm cannon strapped to his arm. He had long blonde hair and evil-looking eyes.

"Well, well. This is a pleasant surprise. I came here to capture Pokemon and I end up finding the three kids that our boss wants, plus two extras that I get to have some fun with." he said evilly. "My grunts found you in the forest and informed me that you were heading this way using their communicators. As you can see, I prepared for your arrival. You won't be getting away this time."

I glanced at Trevor and saw him stiffen. He seemed even more tensed and hateful than he was when he was around me. "Hey! I remember you! You're that guy who kidnapped and killed my best friend in Neon Town two years ago!" he yelled.

The man smirked and said, "You must be that pathetic boy who tried - and failed - to stop me. I remember leaving you in that alley unconscious after I captured your friend."

Trevor glared at him and said, "I'll make you pay for what you did to her! But first, I want to know what happened after I was knocked out."

The man smiled a cold, cruel smile that made me feel uneasy.

"You want to know? Fine, I'll tell you everything since none of you will escape to tell anyone! I saw you and your friend in Neon Town enter that twisting alley so innocently. That's where I made my move, out of the sight of other people. I took your friend to my secret underground hideout in Neon Town, like I had done so many times before to my previous victims. She became just another unlucky person on my list.

"I decided to keep her around until I was bored with her, then I would simply get a new person to amuse me. I had a little 'fun' with her and kept her locked away. She never saw the light of day again down in the hideout. She begged me countless times to let her go, but I just laughed at her, and at her pathetic cries and pleas. Why? Because I love hearing the cries and pleas of the helpless.

"I wore her out so much that she eventually felt helpless and worthless. She felt so helpless and worthless that she begged me to kill her, telling me to end her pain and suffering! She knew that even if she was freed, she'd never be able to live with the terrible memories of what I had done to her. So she told me her only reprieve, her only way to end this never-ending nightmare, was death.

"I granted her wish...in a slow, agonizing way. Oh, I enjoyed EVERY. MOMENT. OF. IT. And then I stabbed her through her heart, and it was all over. I left her body in the forest, outside of Neon Town. Not long after that, Team Rocket found me and recruited me to be one of their four Pokemon Hunters. That's why I was never seen in Neon Town again...and why I was never caught. My name...is Pokemon Hunter Michael."

I couldn't believe what I had just heard. This guy was the worst criminal that we had ever met! He brags about the horrible things that he's done and gets enjoyment out of making people suffer! My blood was boiling as I glared at the man. I saw Jason's hand balled into a fist by his side.

I risked a look at Trevor. In a split second, his whole demeanor had changed. Pure rage came across his face. "YOU SON OF A HOUNDOUR! I'LL KILL YOU!" Trevor yelled. He had a Pokeball enlarged in his hand. Soon, we all had Pokeballs ready to throw and start a battle.

"Kill me? You'd kill an unarmed man with no Pokemon? And I'M the cruel one?"

"Well, how do you plan on capturing us if you don't have a Pokemon?"

He chuckled. "You're right. I don't have one. I have DOZENS OF POKEMON!"

Suddenly, an army of Pokemon appeared from behind the trucks. They appeared normal, but then I noticed their eyes, which were glowing bright red.

"Why are their eyes...?"

"You see, Team Rocket has been collecting a lot more than just Pokemon! We've also been collecting data and technology remains from all of the former criminal groups around the world. For example, Team Plasma, a criminal group from Unova. They invented a way to take control of a Pokemon's mind, forcing the Pokemon to do their bidding! That's what I have done to these Pokemon. It's so much faster and easier than battling and capturing them using Pokeballs, or turning them into stone like the other Pokemon Hunters do! Team Rocket was able to find a way to use that technology and for it to be added to my arm cannon! One shot, and the Pokemon instantly obeys me! No other member of Team Rocket has this but me! Now...surrender or suffer!"

We were surrounded by grunts and Pokemon. We couldn't do anything against this large number, even if we used all of our Pokemon at once!

"Pikachu, Pichu, Double Thunderbolt!" I cried. The attack stunned the grunts and Pokemon, and we took this chance to run back into the forest.

"Get up and go after them, you idiots!" Michael yelled.

We ran for a long time to get as far away as we could until we came across a cave. We hid inside, catching our breaths. Glancing up as I heard a strange noise come from Michelle, I realized that Nikki wasn't there with us! I suddenly remembered when Michelle was captured, and I feared that Nikki was in a lot of danger!

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Nikki had tried to keep up, but fell behind the others since she was a slow runner. She was grabbed by the grunts and brought back to the clearing where Michael was. He looked at her with a malicious look and smiled at her.

"We're going to have some fun together, my dear. I promise." he said and laughed evilly. "I'm going to do the exact same thing to you that I did to your brother's friend two years ago."

Fear came across Nikki's face. She trembled, knowing what he was planning to do to her!

* * *

><p>Trevor went towards the opening of the cave.<p>

"Where are you going?" Michelle asked.

"I'm going to rescue my sister." Trevor answered. "You know what he'll do to her."

"We'll help you." Jason said.

"Yeah, we can help." Adam added.

"No, I don't need any help. I can get my sister myself. I'm not going to let what happened to Valerie happen to Nikki!" he cried.

"Trevor, going alone is crazy! They have grunts out there all over the area looking for us. If you went alone, you would be caught for sure and then Nikki wouldn't have anyone to rescue her!" Adam cried.

"Fine...you can help. But don't get in my way. You two, can you cause a diversion to distract the grunts?"

Jason and Michelle nodded their heads.

"Okay...Adam, you're with me."

So it was settled. Jason and Michelle would cause a diversion while Trevor and Adam would sneak into the ship to get Nikki.

* * *

><p>Inside the airship, a door was opened and Nikki was thrown into an empty room. Her clothes were thrown into the room along with her. She shook violently with fear and tears flowed down her cheeks. She was emotionally scarred for life after what had just happened to her.<p>

"So that was your first time? Don't worry, the first time is always the hardest. I always feel a sense of pride when I'm the first. Your brother's friend reacted the same way when I did it to her. Anyway, this won't be the only time. You are my prisoner now, so you might as well get used to these kinds of experiences. And when I'm bored with you, I'll 'dispose of you' just like I did to your brother's friend."

Then he closed the door and locked it. Nikki was crying harder now, hearing what he had just told her. She put her clothes back on and curled up in the corner of the room, hugging her knees to her chest. She looked broken and frail, compared to the full-of-life girl that she normally was.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

It had been about twenty minutes since we had left the cave. Trevor and I were waiting for the signal from Jason and Michelle. We hid behind some trees, looking at the heavily guarded airship. Hunter Michael walked out of the airship and talked to some grunts, asking if there had been any news about finding us.

Suddenly, a loud explosion came from inside the forest. Smoke was rising far away from us and Michael and some grunts took off in their trucks towards it. Michelle and Jason's diversion had worked. Trevor and I quickly and quietly ran around the remaining grunts and onto the ship.

"She'll probably be in a locked room." I said. "If he's as evil as I think he is, he wouldn't let her get away."

"So we need to check the locked rooms." Trevor said.

We started checking every locked door that we came across. After no success of finding Nikki, I could tell that Trevor was becoming annoyed and worried about what had happened to his sister. I turned the handle on the next door and it was locked. Pressing the button to unlock it, I opened the door and looked inside.

Nikki was there in the room, huddled in the corner with her knees pulled up. She was crying and trembling. She didn't appear to be injured or physically hurt.

Trevor ran over to Nikki and crouched down. "Nikki, what happened? What did he do?" he asked.

"He did...what...what h-he did t-to...Va-Valerie..." she said between sobs.

Trevor's eyes turned darker as his anger came back. "First my best friend and now my own sister! Once we get out of here and get you to safety, I'll go after Michael. I've got a score to settle with him."

We had to half-carry Nikki as we escaped the ship and walked through the forest, having to stop a few times to avoid the grunts. We made it back to the cave to find Jason and Michelle there and they saw Nikki, still shaking and crying. Trevor and I explained what had happened to her.

"That's horrible! Violating a helpless girl like that..." Jason said in shock.

"Poor Nikki. And to think that Valerie went through the same thing." Michelle said, nearly crying herself.

Trevor suddenly moved towards the cave opening, planning to go and take care of Michael.

"Trevor, stop. You can't go out there. His men are all over the place looking for us. You'll be caught just like Nikki was. He also has all of those angry mind-controlled Pokemon out there that will attack. How are you going to fight all of those by yourself? The five of us together couldn't do it, so how would you be able to do it on your own?" I said to him.

"Well, I can't just stay here and do nothing!" Trevor cried.

"If you go out there, it's suicide! You would get caught and you don't know what will happen to you. With those Pokemon, there's no telling what they'll do."

Trevor and I continued arguing loudly at each other until he looked towards me and I saw the anger in his eyes disappear quickly. I was shocked and I know that Jason and Michelle had to be, too. Because Trevor...started crying.

I had never seen him like this before. I figured that this was two years of pent-up rage finally being released. He had become so angry and frustrated that he had broken down and cried. He seemed almost as emotionally broken as Nikki.

He collapsed to his knees and he looked at me sadly. "I couldn't protect my best friend from danger. And now, I couldn't even protect my own sister! I've been calling other trainers weak and pathetic ever since I lost Valerie...but in reality, I'M the one who's weak and pathetic!"

"Trevor, just because bad things happen in people's lives, doesn't mean you're pathetic." Jason said.

"Everyone goes through good times and bad times in their lives, and whatever bad thing that happens makes you stronger. But you can overcome them and become stronger and learn from each trial in life that you face." Michelle added.

"You'll have times when you fall down, but remember that there are always people who will be there to help pick you back up and help you feel better, like your family and friends." I said, quoting what my dad had told me.

I saw confusion on Trevor's face as soon as I finished my sentence. "Family and friends?" he asked.

"Yes, friends. We're your friends." we said to him. "And right now, Nikki looks like she's going through a hard time, just like you did two years ago. She needs some support from her family, too."

Trevor got up and walked over to Nikki. He knelt down and hugged her. Nikki didn't flinch from his touch and she leaned into Trevor, crying once again. It was the closest that I had ever seen the two siblings.

"You'll be alright. We're all here for you." he said softly to his sister.

* * *

><p>The next morning, I woke up and I noticed that the others were asleep. We hid out in the cave all night to stay away from Team Rocket. I walked to the cave's opening and looked outside to see Team Rocket's ship flying away. Michael must have given up on looking for us.<p>

Once everyone woke up, we decided on what to do. We were going to continue traveling. Nikki wanted to go home to Neon Town for a while. After what she went through, she needed some time to recover emotionally. Her parents should be able to help her there.

"Will you still be at the Grand Festival?" Michelle asked.

"Maybe..." Nikki replied.

Michelle walked over to Nikki and gave her a comforting hug, telling Nikki that she'll be okay. Then she walked back over to us and we turned to leave.

"Adam, wait!" Trevor yelled.

I turned around to see Trevor with a smile on his face. A true, genuine smile. I had never seen him smile at all since I first met him.

He held out his hand towards me and said, "...Thank you, Adam."

I shook his hand and smiled back. We were enemies no longer. Now we were friends.

**Author's Note: This was the most difficult chapter for us to write so far, so let us know how we did.**

**Adam and Trevor, two enemies who had to put aside their differences and work together to save Nikki. But now, they're friends at last!**

**What adventures await our heroes? Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	37. Bulbasaur's Evolution

Jason, Michelle, and I had been continuing on our journey after leaving Trevor and Nikki last week. I walked across the field and faced Jason. We were going to have a battle.

"Haunter, go!" Jason cried.

"Haunt! Haunter!"

"Bulbasaur, let's show 'em!" I cried.

"Bulba!"

Michelle was sitting on the ground, watching with Pikachu and Pichu beside her. Thanks to the contests that I'd been watching Michelle compete in, I had picked up on ways to block an attack without having to dodge. I just hoped that it would work.

"Haunter, use Shadow Ball!" Jason cried.

"Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf!" I yelled.

The leaves hit the Shadow Ball and then hit Haunter.

"Haunter, disappear and use Shadow Punch!"

"Bulbasaur, get ready for another Razor Leaf."

Haunter vanished and I waited. Bulbasaur was looking around the field.

"Stay calm, Bulbasaur." I said. Bulbasaur stopped looking around with panic and looked around on alert.

"Now!" Jason cried. Haunter appeared behind Bulbasaur.

"Behind you!" I cried. Bulbasaur went to turn, but got hit by the unavoidable Shadow Punch. Bulbasaur slid across the field. "Now, Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur released another Razor Leaf attack and Jason commanded Haunter to dodge. Haunter vanished and Razor Leaf missed the target.

"Shadow Ball!" Jason cried, bringing my mind back to the battle.

"Vine Whip!"

The purple sphere headed towards Bulbasaur and the vine cut straight through it.

"Dodge!" Jason cried, since the vine was heading towards Haunter. Haunter tried to vanish, but Vine Whip stopped it. "Haunter, use Shadow Ball!" Haunter recovered from the hit and sent a Shadow Ball towards Bulbasaur.

"Razor Leaf!"

"Haunter, Shadow Punch!"

Haunter vanished right as the Razor Leaf started. I then realized Jason had wanted this to happen. He sent the Shadow Ball to make me counter it with Razor Leaf while he planned to attack Bulbasaur with Shadow Punch! That Shadow Ball was just a diversion!

"Bulbasaur!" I cried, seeing Haunter appear in front of it. Shadow Punch connected and sent Bulbasaur into the air.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur cried, spinning in the air.

I then remembered my gym battle with Misty. "Bulbasaur, think of the gym battle against Misty! Charge your Solarbeam!" I cried. Bulbasaur was able to spin in midair and started charging Solarbeam.

"Bulba...Bulba...Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur cried, firing the Solarbeam towards Haunter.

"Haunter!" Jason cried as Haunter got hit. Haunter cried out in pain and when the attack was done, Haunter was on the ground. Haunter weakly said its name before fainting.

"You did great, take a rest." Jason said, returning Haunter.

I ran over to Bulbasaur. "Great job, Bulbasaur! You did it!" I cried, rubbing its head.

"Bulba!"

"Bulbasaur has gotten a lot stronger, Adam." Jason said. "Those were Haunter's best attacks too."

"Yeah..." I said, looking at Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur was my first Pokemon and had helped me win my first two badges. A lot had happened to it since we left Pallet Town. I took notice to Bulbasaur's bulb. It was glowing blue.

"Adam, is Bulbasaur sick? Its bulb is glowing blue." Michelle said, running over.

I shook my head and said, "There shouldn't be anything wrong with Bulbasaur. It should be close to evolving. But just to make sure, we need to go to the Pokemon Center."

We headed to the Pokemon Center with Bulbasaur walking beside me. That way, if something was wrong with Bulbasaur, then I would notice. If Bulbasaur was in its Pokeball, I wouldn't know.

We walked into the Pokemon Center and to front desk. Nurse Joy looked up and smiled.

"Hi, how may I help you?" she asked.

"My Bulbasaur's bulb is glowing. I just want to make sure nothing is wrong." I said, picking Bulbasaur up and putting him on the counter.

Nurse Joy looked at the bulb, which was still glowing. "Well, from what I can tell, Bulbasaur is healthy. I'll run some tests to make sure, it shouldn't be long." she said as a gurney was rolled beside her.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." I said.

We went and sat down in the lobby.

"Adam, why did you say that Bulbasaur is close to evolving by seeing its glowing bulb?" Jason asked.

"One of my dad's stories that he told me. When my dad was traveling, he had a Bulbasaur which is now Venusaur. Bulbasaur had been in a battle and won and that's when the bulb started to glow. My dad didn't know what was wrong with Bulbasaur, since it looked like he was in pain. So he rushed Bulbasaur to the Pokemon Center." I explained.

"He told Nurse Joy that the bulb was glowing and begged her to help Bulbasaur, so she went to run some tests. After the tests were finished, Nurse Joy walked out to tell my dad what was wrong with Bulbasaur. She told him Bulbasaur was perfectly fine and that he was close to evolving.

"Nurse Joy then told them the story about the Mysterious Garden. The Mysterious Garden is a place where Bulbasaur gather to evolve. Not many know of it and it's said to only be a myth.

"My dad's Bulbasaur left the Pokemon Center that night and went to the garden. My dad, Misty, and Brock followed. There were a lot of Bulbasaurs gathered and one Venusaur was there, too. My dad's Bulbasaur chose not to evolve and Venusaur and the newly evolved Ivysaurs didn't like that. But once Bulbasaur helped save the Ivysaurs from Team Rocket, Venusaur accepted Bulbasaur's decision." I said, finishing the story.

"So Bulbasaur chose not to evolve. Why?" Michelle asked.

"I guess Bulbasaur wasn't ready to evolve. Eventually, he did evolve, just not at the moment it was supposed to." I replied with a shrug.

Nurse Joy walked back out and walked over to us. "Bulbasaur is perfectly fine. The glowing of its bulb is showing that it will evolve soon. Maybe it will evolve at the Mysterious Garden?"

"Thank you," I said.

She nodded and walked back to the front desk.

* * *

><p>"Pika!"<p>

"Pichu!"

I felt electricity hit me and I cried out, waking up. I heard two other cries. I looked at Pikachu.

"Pikachu! What was that for? Why are you waking us up in the middle of the night?" I asked.

Michelle was sitting up and running her hands through her orange hair, smoothing it back down. Jason was looking annoyed, being woken up like that.

"Pi!" Pichu cried.

I then saw that Bulbasaur wasn't in the room. "Do you know where Bulbasaur went?" I asked.

Pikachu and Pichu nodded. I hopped off the bed and slid my feet into my shoes. Jason and Michelle slid their feet into their shoes as well.

"Lead the way." I said to Pikachu and Pichu. They nodded and ran off with us following. We walked outside and flower pollen was everywhere, making Jason sneeze.

"There's Bulbasaur." Michelle said, pointing up ahead.

We continued to follow Bulbasaur from a distance and came upon a clearing. We hid in the bushes while Bulbasaur went to join the dozens of other Bulbasaurs that were standing around.

"Wow...I've never seen so many Bulbasaurs before." Michelle said.

This was the Mysterious Garden that my dad had seen. We watched as one by one, the Bulbasaurs started to evolve into Ivysaurs. Would my Bulbasaur evolve or refuse like my dad's did?

I saw my Bulbasaur. It was towards the back. It looked around and saw all of the other Bulbasaurs evolving. I watched as a light covered him and when it faded, Ivysaur stood there.

"Bulbasaur evolved." Jason said.

"We should head back, before any of them notice we're here. People aren't supposed to see this since the Bulbasaurs always do it privately." I said quietly.

Michelle and Jason nodded and we walked back the way we had come. We laid back down and went back to sleep. Ivysaur would come back on his own.

* * *

><p>The next morning, I woke up to see Ivysaur sleeping on the floor by my bed. I quietly pulled out my Pokedex and checked Ivysaur's data.<p>

"Ivysaur, the Seed Pokemon and the evolved form of Bulbasaur. Ivysaur gains strength from sunlight, which makes the bud on its back grow larger. When this bud emits a sweet-smelling aroma, it is evidence that a large flower will soon bloom from it. When this happens, it will evolve once more into Venusaur."

"Hmm. I guess I'll have to keep my nose open for that smell that will let me know that Ivysaur's close to evolving again." I said to myself.

After we had all woken up, dressed, and eaten, we were ready to keep going.

"Where's the next gym?" I asked Nurse Joy.

"The nearest one would be on Cinnabar Island. There's also going to be a contest there." she replied.

"Then it looks like we're going to Cinnabar Island next." said Michelle. "How do we get there?"

"Head south from here and you'll reach a harbor. There are ships there which take you to and from the island."

"Thanks, Nurse Joy." said Jason.

"No problem, happy to help." she said, smiling.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

The Elite Four were working, trying to find out more about Team Rocket and what they wanted with the Temple of Legends. Karen was typing away at the computer, searching for any information on the temple.

"Anything yet?" Lance asked Karen.

"No, and there's a lot of data, records, and historical information to go through." she replied. "It's a long, slow process, but I'll get it done."

"Lorelei, how's the job going with the police?"

"I've notified every precinct in the Kanto region. If they spot something suspicious or see Team Rocket, I've told them to inform us immediately." she replied. "But there is something that you might want to know."

"What's that?"

"Officer Jenny in Cerulean City says that several months ago, two kids told her that they had seen Team Rocket searching for Moon Stones on Mt. Moon, but she ignored it because she didn't believe that Team Rocket could be back."

"What? There are others who have already seen Team Rocket? We need to find them. Maybe they know something about this that could help our investigation." Koga suggested.

"Good idea. Bruno, you handle that." Lance instructed.

"I'm on it." he replied.

"Do you think that maybe Team Rocket had something to do with the sinking of the S.S. Ketchum a few months ago?" Lorelei asked.

"The ship that was mysteriously destroyed and all but three people were killed? It's possible, but why target a civilian ship?" Koga wondered.

"Terrorism." Lance said simply. "They must've done it to send a message to the world that announces their return after so many years. And they might try it again!"

"We've got to prevent another disaster like that from happening!" Lorelei exclaimed. "I'll inform the authorities at once."

"Tell them to shut down all ship travel and lock down all major ship ports until we find out what Team Rocket is planning." Lance ordered. "The only ships that are allowed to sail in Kanto are cargo ships under escort from police boats for protection."

"Looks like this just got a lot more serious." Koga said nervously.

**Author's Note: Unlike his father's Bulbasaur, Adam's Bulbasaur chooses to evolve. Meanwhile, the Elite Four gain new information on Team Rocket and the stakes get a lot higher!**

**Something big is coming soon and the next few chapters are going to build it up! So stay tuned for the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	38. Revelations

**Normal POV**

"Lorelei, how are things going on your end?" Lance asked.

"The police are locking down all of the major ship ports in Kanto as we speak, Lance." she replied.

"Excellent. Any luck on your end, Karen?"

"Yes, I've just found something. I think you should see this. It talks about the Temple of Legends that Team Rocket is searching for." Karen answered.

"Finally! We're getting somewhere! Maybe we'll finally be able to find out why the temple is so important to Team Rocket and why they're looking for it."

The Elite Four and Lance sat around a table as Karen began reading from some books.

"Thousands of years ago, people and Pokemon lived together in peace throughout the world. The Legendary Pokemon had a special bond to a different human that they each chose for themselves. These people had the power of the Legendary Pokemon at their disposal, having the ability to use them in battle. The Legendary Pokemon knew that they would use their powers to protect the world. But these people could only summon their Legendary Pokemon at a special shrine called the Temple of Legends. These people used a special type of Aura to activate the temples." Karen read.

"So that's why Team Rocket's looking for the temple!" Koga exclaimed. "They're going to activate the temple, summon the Legendaries, and capture them to use them to conquer the world!"

"Wait," Bruno interrupted, "Something doesn't make sense. The people who had the ability to summon the Legendary Pokemon died a long time ago. How could Team Rocket possibly activate the temple?"

"There's more to read." Karen replied. "Apparently, once every one hundred years, a human with special Aura powers is born with the ability to summon the Legendary Pokemon. The book says that this person has many names, spoken by many different Legendary Pokemon, but his most common name is known as...the Chosen One."

"'Chosen One?' I think Ash mentioned that to us once a few years ago." said Lance.

"Yes, he said that a long time ago, the Legendary Pokemon, Lugia, called him that." Lorelei said, remembering.

"So Ash is the one who can activate the temple and summon the Legendaries! Team Rocket must've attacked him and captured him to make him do it! That explains his disappearance almost eight months ago."

"Is there anything else, Karen?" Bruno asked.

"No, that's all that I could find. I still don't know where the Temple of Legends is, but now it's even more important that we find it before Team Rocket does, now that we know what it does and why they want to find it."

"I'm going to travel and do a search across Kanto to see if I can find anything." Lance said to the others. "Call me on my PokeGear if any of you learn anything."

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

It had been two days since Bulbasaur evolved into Ivysaur. We had finally reached the harbor and the ocean breeze was cool and refreshing. Nurse Joy had told us that we would be able to sail from here to Cinnabar Island.

But just then, I spotted Officer Jenny and some other policemen near the entrance to the harbor. As we approached her, she looked up and said, "Stop! The harbor is closed. All ships and ports are on lock down until further notice. Sorry."

Why was the harbor closed? This was the only way that we could get to Cinnabar Island. Did they not think of this when they closed the harbor? Without stopping at Cinnabar Island, Jason and I couldn't get our gym badges and be closer to entering the Pokemon League and Michelle couldn't enter the Grand Festival without her final ribbon, which could be won in the Cinnabar Contest.

We walked over to a bench and sat down. I could tell that Jason was frustrated by what Officer Jenny had told us and Michelle looked upset, too. I looked up at the sky and stared at the clouds.

_Arceus, if you're up there, please give us a sign of what to do._

Hearing a sound from above, I looked up and saw a group of Pidgeys flying in the sky. I suddenly had an idea!

"Wait, if we can't go THROUGH the water...what if we went OVER the water?"

"What are you talking about, Adam?" Jason asked.

"Follow me, I have an idea." I said, hopping up.

I lead them up to a cliff that overlooked the harbor and I tossed Pidgeot's Pokeball.

"Jason, can you release Charizard?" I asked.

Jason removed a Pokeball and soon Charizard was out of its Pokeball.

"Wait, we're going to FLY to Cinnabar Island?" Michelle asked.

"Yep, you guessed it. I'll be flying on Pidgeot and Jason can fly on Charizard. Your Flying Pokemon, Togetic, is too small to carry you so you'll have to ride with one of us." I said, looking at Michelle.

I made sure Pidgeot was okay before I hopped onto him. Jason was already on Charizard, waiting.

"Go ahead and pick who you want to fly with." I said to Michelle, since she hadn't moved.

Michelle walked towards me and Pidgeot and I heard Jason mutter, "Well, that figures." I knew he'd thought that no one had heard him, but I did. I have a superb sense of hearing, although I didn't know why Jason had said, "Well, that figures."

"Okay, hold on tight." I said as I loosely gripped Pidgeot's feathers. I felt Pikachu and Pichu grip my shoulders and Michelle wrap her arms around my waist as she sat behind me on Pidgeot.

"Ready?" I asked Jason. He nodded his head in response.

"To Cinnabar Island, Charizard." Jason said.

"Follow Charizard, Pidgeot." I said.

Charizard and Pidgeot took to the air.

I felt Michelle tighten her grip as soon as we lifted off. I knew she was nervous, since this was the first time that any of us had flown. I was a little nervous, too, so I grabbed Pidgeot's feathers a little tighter. I glanced over to see Jason looking down at the water as we flew away from land.

"This is so cool!" he cried.

After a couple of minutes, I finally felt safe enough being in the air, so I looked around. Being in the air was amazing. Michelle's grip on me loosened as she looked around as well.

"This is amazing!" she said as she looked around in awe.

The clouds looked so close that it seemed like we could almost touch them. Seeing the water down below, I could see the sun making it sparkle. I could also see Water Pokemon jumping up out of the water. Other Flying Pokemon were gliding along. Being in the sky was peaceful. Not a lot of noise, like on the ground.

* * *

><p><strong>Darien's POV<strong>

After capturing some Pokemon and discovering some ruins that might lead to the Temple of Legends, I was in my ship, heading back to base.

_Father will be pleased once he hears of these ruins. Team Rocket is getting closer to achieving its goal!_

"Sir, we've picked up something on the radar."

"Well, bring it up." I ordered.

The screen in front of me showed three kids on Pokemon, flying in the sky. I smirked to myself.

"Well, my day keeps getting better and better! I capture a large group of Pokemon and find what might be the Temple of Legends, and now I have my nephew and his friends within reach! And they're over the open ocean, so they have nowhere to hide this time!"

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

We had been flying for a few hours and everything was calm. We had been talking to one another along the way. Suddenly, the calmness was disturbed by the sound of engines. I looked around and from the clouds above, a ship was coming down towards us. A ship that was identical to the ones that the Team Rocket Pokemon Hunters fly in.

I looked around for any sign of a hiding place, but in the air, you have nothing. Not to mention that there was nothing but ocean below us for miles. Nowhere to run, so we were going to have to stay and fight.

"We may be captured, but we're going down fighting!" I said firmly. "We're not gonna just give up!"

We waited for a few moments and a hatch opened. A swarm of Crobats were heading towards us. We were about to be in a Pokemon battle...an aerial battle, at that!

"Be careful. Crobats have four wings instead of two. This makes them very fast flyers!" Jason warned us.

"Pidgeot, you focus on getting us close. Pikachu and Pichu can attack, but keep your guard up. Attack only when needed. Pikachu and Pichu, use Thunderbolt!" I said, starting the battle.

"Charizard, use Flamethrower!" Jason cried.

The Crobats split into two groups to avoid the attacks and flew in opposite directions. Pidgeot flew after one group, Charizard went after the other. But they were too fast and soon we were the ones being chased!

Pidgeot veered left and right, avoiding the Swift and Air Cutter attacks that were coming from behind. We had to get back on the attack! Then I got an idea.

"Hang on tight, Michelle! It's gonna be a bumpy ride!" I cried. Michelle tightened her arms around my waist. "Pidgeot, go straight up and circle behind them!"

Pidgeot zoomed up at a ninety degree angle and then circled around upside-down above the Crobats and we nearly fell off! Pidgeot then leveled out right-side up directly behind the Crobats.

"Now!" I yelled. Pikachu and Pichu launched their Thunderbolts and Pidgeot created a Twister, damaging the Crobats and blowing them away.

Jason and Charizard were locked in battle with the other Crobats, so we flew down to give them a hand. Things appeared to be going our way until a few Crobats used Screech.

Pidgeot cringed from the sound along with Pikachu and Pichu. Charizard was cringing from the sound, too. I looked up to see some Swift attacks heading towards us.

"Pikachu!" I yelled. Pikachu fought through the screeching sound and launched a Thunderbolt. Pichu attacked, too, and I saw a Flamethrower hit as well.

After a while, we had defeated around a dozen Crobats and the rest were flying back towards the ship.

"I don't believe it! They're retreating! We won!" Jason shouted.

I couldn't believe it, either. Team Rocket's Pokemon never retreat like that. Something was about to happen. I saw something heading towards us. A person was on a three-headed Pokemon.

"You cowardly Crobats! How dare you flee from your opponents?!" the person yelled angrily.

I saw that this was another Pokemon Hunter, seeing that he was dressed in a red jumpsuit with a black jacket over it, a hood covering his head, and an arm canon. He was on a Hydreigon. I also realized that this was the last of the Pokemon Hunters as Mya's words replayed in my head. She had said that there were four of them.

"Hydreigon, shoot them down."

We watched in horror as the Crobats got hit with Hyper Beam attacks and fell towards the ocean, unconscious. They fell into the ocean and were gone. They would drown, since they had fainted and couldn't swim. This guy wasn't messing around. How could he do that to those Crobats?!

"Why did you do that?! You just murdered them! Your own Pokemon!" I cried angrily.

"Those Crobats were pitiful to lose to you kids. They have no honor, fleeing like that. Besides, I can always capture more. Those worthless Pokemon are expendable." he answered.

What could we do? This guy was crazy and cruel! I glanced around and a surge of hope rushed through me.

"Jason, follow me, and hurry." I said. "Pidgeot, go!"

Pidgeot flew the way I had pointed and I saw Charizard follow. A laughed echoed behind us.

"You can run, but you can't hide!"

I pointed to what I had spotted earlier. Land! And it wasn't far from us.

"What land is that?" Michelle asked.

"The Seafoam Islands, a group of uninhabited islands that are just before Cinnabar Island. We can't outrun or out-fly him and our Pokemon can't battle in the air forever. We might have a better chance to battle on land." I replied.

"Land, Pidgeot." I said, once we were above the Seafoam Islands. Pidgeot landed on the rocky ground and Charizard landed behind him.

I looked to the sky to see the Pokemon Hunter not far behind us and his ship not far behind him.

"Return." we said to Pidgeot and Charizard. It was best to return our Flying Pokemon in case we needed to get away quickly. Also, the Pokemon Hunter couldn't capture them if they were in their Pokeballs.

I spun around as I heard something. The Hydreigon had landed and the Pokemon Hunter stepped off. I noticed that no one was with him.

"Where are all of your grunts?" I asked.

"I don't need their help. I can beat the three of you and capture you myself." he replied with a smile. He seemed confident that he would win, but we weren't going to give him the satisfaction.

"We'll see about that, you heartless beast!" I cried, still angered from what he did to the Crobats.

"Now, now. Is that any way to talk to your family?"

"Family? What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Oh, how sweet it is. You have no idea, do you?"

"Then how about you tell me? Who do you think you are?"

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Pokemon Hunter Darien, one of the four Pokemon Hunters of Team Rocket."

"So?"

He gave a laugh. "Well, my last name is Berlitz. Darien Berlitz. Sound familiar, Adam?!"

I stared at Darien in shock. Berlitz was my..."Berlitz...that was my mom's maiden name!" I cried.

"Very good. Yes, your mom, Dawn, is my twin sister! And you know what that means, right, Adam? I'm your uncle...and you are my nephew!"

I shook my head. "No...no, that's not true! You're lying! My mom was an only child! She had no brothers or sisters!" I cried.

Darien removed the goggles that he was wearing, pulled down the hood covering his head, and revealed his face. His short hair was dark blue, the same shade of blue as my mom's and his skin tone was the same, too. The only difference was his eyes, which were red.

"Deep down inside, you know that I'm telling the truth. I can see it in your eyes." he said to me.

The only thing I could feel was shock. I fell to my knees on the ground and looked downwards. It couldn't be...he couldn't be related to me or my mom. My mom was an only child. He's never been mentioned by my mom or my grandma. The only thing was that he looked too much like my mom to be lying about being my uncle.

"If you're really my uncle, then why haven't I heard of you?" I asked once I could find the strength to speak.

"Why don't you ask my mother, Johanna? I understand that she's your grandmother? She remembers me. I can understand why she's never mentioned me, though. But enough talk! It's time to end this. Hydreigon, Triple Hyper Beam!"

Before any of us had time to react, we were hit by the Hyper Beams from Hydreigon's three heads. We flew into the air and then fell to the ground very hard. My whole body felt like it was beaten, I couldn't even move. I looked over and saw that both of my friends were covered in bruises. I knew that I was, too. I could feel it.

I heard footsteps approach and I looked up. Darien looked down at me and raised his arm cannon, aiming it at my face. "Sorry it had to be this way...nephew." he said.

I knew what was coming. I was about to be captured. We had managed to escape from all of the traps that Team Rocket had laid for us in the past...but now, our luck had run out! I closed my eyes and silently said goodbye to my mom and goodbye to my dad. My only regrets are that I wasn't able to rescue my dad and that I never entered the Pokemon League.

I waited to feel the beam hit me...but nothing happened. A moment passed...and then another...and another. I slowly opened my eyes to see Darien still looking down at me. In his eyes, I saw hesitation. His eyes were wide, his arm started shaking, and he bit his lip.

_What's he doing? What's he waiting for? He has us where he wants us! Why doesn't he just shoot us and end it?_

"What are you waiting for?" I asked. "Aren't you going to capture us?"

Darien gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and sighed heavily. He then lowered his arm cannon and shook his head, saying, "No. No, I'm not."

He turned sharply on his heel and walked back to his Hydreigon and hopped on. "Stay away from Team Rocket. Next time, you might not be so lucky."

The Hydreigon flew off towards the ship and the ship soon flew away into the distance. Once we knew that the ship was gone, we got up.

"What just happened? Why didn't he capture us? I mean, we saw him kill those Crobats without a second thought, so we know that he has no conscience." Jason wondered.

"I don't know. When he looked down at me, he hesitated. There was also a bit of recognition in his eyes. I think I reminded him of someone close to him. But I look too much like my dad for that person to be my mom. Who did I remind him of?"

A small silence passed.

"I still can't believe that I have a long-lost uncle. I didn't even know that he existed. And why didn't my mom or grandma tell me about him?"

"You can tell them when you get back home. Right now, we should get out of here, before he changes his mind and comes back to get us." Michelle said.

**Author's Note: A lot was revealed in this chapter! The Elite Four have figured out what the Temple of Legends is and why Team Rocket is looking for it!**

**Meanwhile, the kids meet Darien, the fourth and final Pokemon Hunter working for Team Rocket, and Adam discovers that Darien his uncle!**

**But why didn't Darien capture Adam and the others? Who does Adam remind him of? Will the Elite Four find the Temple of Legends before Team Rocket does? What awaits our heroes on Cinnabar Island?**

**Find out next time on Pokemon NG!**


	39. Another Contest, Another Rival!

We were back in the sky, riding on Pidgeot and Charizard, flying in silence. I think each of us had something on our minds. Me? I still couldn't believe that I had a uncle! Why was Darien never mentioned by my family, and why did he let us go when he could've captured us? There was a lot that I needed to know, but when would I find out?

After flying for a while, Cinnabar Island came into view. The sun was now setting, so I would say that we made good time, considering what happened earlier. Pidgeot and Charizard landed in front of the Pokemon Center. They were exhausted from flying all day.

"Thanks, Pidgeot." I said, returning my tired Pokemon.

Jason returned Charizard and we headed inside the Pokemon Center.

"Hello, how may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked once we stopped at the front desk.

"Can you heal our Pokemon? We also need one room." I said.

"Certainly,"

We handed our Pokemon to her and she handed us a key.

"Room four,"

"Thank you,"

We walked to the room and dropped our bags off.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm pretty hungry." Michelle said.

"Same here," Jason said.

"Then let's get some supper." I replied.

We walked out of the room and towards the cafeteria. After walking through the hallway, we finally came to the metal doors that lead to the cafeteria. We went inside and headed to the line. Tonight's meal was hamburgers, fries, and a slice of pie. We got our food and walked to one of the empty tables and sat down.

"Are you okay?" Michelle asked, looking at me. I knew that she was referring to the news that I had received from my supposed uncle.

"Yeah, I think so. I'm just really shocked." I replied, picking up the hamburger.

"Don't worry, Adam. You'll find out what's going on. Your mom should be able to tell you, either her or your grandma." Jason said.

"Yeah, I hope so."

Once we finished eating, we went back to our room. We had slight bruises on our bodies from when we hit the ground after being attacked by Darien's Hydreigon. But thankfully, the bruising was faint.

We changed into our pajamas and laid down. I rolled over onto my side and looked out the window. I wondered if my dad knew about Darien. Did my mom know? Darien had said that he was my mom's twin brother. Or was it just my grandma that knew about him? Why was he kept a secret from me? Before my eyes closed, I looked at the stars and quietly said goodnight to my dad.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

"How did the search go?" Team Rocket's leader questioned.

"Very well, father. I think I may have discovered where the Temple of Legends is." Darien replied.

"Good work. Send a group of grunts to investigate the area where you think the Temple of Legends might be. After a long search for the temple, Team Rocket may finally be on the brink of achieving its goal! I'm very pleased with your work, Darien. Keep it up."

"I will, father."

Darien left the room and headed back towards his own quarters. As he walked, he tried to sort out the many things that had been on his mind since his failed attempt to capture Adam and his friends. He was beginning to question the motives and morals of not only his father, but his own as well.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

I woke up and looked around to see that Jason was up and Michelle wasn't in her bed, which meant that she was probably in the bathroom.

Jason finished tying his shoe and looked up. "Good morning. Michelle went to the other bathroom to get ready, so you can use this bathroom." he said.

"Okay,"

I got up and walked into the bathroom. When I finished washing and was dressed, I walked back out to see that Michelle was back and was pulling her bag onto her shoulders.

We walked out of the room and went to the cafeteria to get some breakfast.

"I need to register for the contest that's being held here." Michelle said as we ate.

"Okay, we can head there once we finish breakfast." I replied while Jason nodded in agreement.

After we finished our breakfast, we went to retrieve our Pokemon from Nurse Joy and thanked her for looking after them. We had left them in her care all night so that they could get some extra rest.

We walked out of the Pokemon Center and I spotted a figure with purple hair. When he turned to face us, I realized who it was. Paul. He saw us and approached us.

"So your pathetic father still hasn't returned. He only has four months before he loses his title of Pokemon Master. That title will be all mine! Even if your dad was alive, he wouldn't be able to beat me because this one Pokemon is all that I need to win." Paul said, removing a Pokeball and tossing it.

When the light faded, a Latias was before us. I looked at the Latias and I remembered my dad telling me a story about Latias and Latios. It happened when he was in Altomare.

"Did you get that Latias from Altomare?" I asked.

"Yes, I heard the legends about Latias and Latios. I searched all over Altomare for them and eventually found the secret garden where they live. I was hoping to catch both of them, but only Latias was there. But one of them is more than enough to beat your dad if he returns. He doesn't stand a chance against a Legendary Pokemon like Latias!" Paul said as he hopped onto Latias' back.

As Latias flew away, she looked back. In her eyes, I could see the sadness, the longing for freedom. Her eyes screamed "Please, let me go." Latias didn't want to be captured. Without Latias in Altomare, the city was defenseless! My dad had told me what had happened when he was there.

"How did he even manage to capture a Legendary Pokemon?!" Jason cried.

"Latias is the protector of Altomare. Without Latias there...the town is unprotected. Trouble could happen and they'll have no one to protect them." I muttered.

"Latias wants to be freed. She's so sad, you could see it in her eyes." Michelle said softly.

"Someone like Paul doesn't deserve a Legendary Pokemon." said Jason. "We know that he wouldn't treat them well."

"It's no wonder Latias looked so sad, she must feel like a prisoner!" I declared.

"That's horrible..." Michelle said, shocked at what Paul had done.

We eventually walked towards the Contest Hall so Michelle could register for the contest. We walked into the building and Michelle went to the front desk while Jason and I hung back near the doors.

Michelle walked back over after registering but right as we were about to leave, we ran into Jillian, the contest announcer.

"Hi. You're Michelle Waterflower, right?" Jillian asked.

"Yeah, that's me. Hi, Jillian. Um, when is the contest?" Michelle asked.

"It's in three days."

"Thanks,"

"No problem!"

We walked out of the building and I turned to Michelle. "Are you going to practice?" I asked.

"Yes, are you two going to practice for your gym battles?" Michelle asked.

"Yep,"

"Hey!" said a voice.

We stopped walking and looked behind us to see a girl running towards us. She appeared to be our age, with long, golden yellow hair, and brown eyes. She was wearing a gold-colored halter top with an open, white midriff jacket over it, blue skinny jeans, and black shoes.

"Hi, I saw you three coming out of the Contest Hall. Are you all entering?" she asked.

"I am." Michelle replied.

"Really? Can I come and practice with you?"

I saw Michelle look a little unsure. I knew she remembered what had happened with Blair in the Saffron City contest.

"Sure..." Michelle trailed.

"Don't worry, I won't show off all of my moves and you don't have to show off all of yours if you don't want to." the girl said, noticing Michelle's uncertainty.

"Okay,"

"Oh, by the way, I'm Amber."

"I'm Michelle. This is Adam and Jason." Michelle said.

"Hello," Amber said in a friendly voice.

"You two go ahead. We need to practice for our gym battles." I said.

Michelle nodded and she and Amber walked off. Once the girls were out of hearing range, I turned to Jason.

"There's something strange about that girl. She's hiding something, I know she is."

"How can you tell?" Jason asked.

"Her Aura. I felt her Aura change slightly when I looked at her. Remember back in Fuchsia City? You said that my Aura is triggered when I'm in danger. Maybe it's triggered for other things, too. Whatever the reason, I know I sensed something strange about her."

"If that's true, then what could she be hiding from us? What is it that she's keeping secret?"

I didn't know. It was a mystery. A mystery that I hoped to find out.

* * *

><p><strong>Michelle's POV<strong>

I was backstage, waiting for the contest to start. I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around to find Amber, who looked really pretty in her contest outfit. She was dressed in a long, yellow strapless dress that went down to her ankles. The top part of the dress (down to her waist) was covered in golden sparkles. Her long hair was clipped back and she was a bit taller with the yellow high heels she was wearing. Then again, I was wearing heels as well, so we were around the same height.

"Hi," I said.

"Hi, Michelle. Ready to go?" Amber asked.

"I sure am. Your training really helped me."

"You were a big help to me, too. I love your outfit, by the way."

"Thanks, you look great, too."

I had gotten to know Amber a little better over the last few days while practicing with her. I learned that she had gotten her name came from the color of her hair when she was born. Her hair color had faded and changed from amber to golden blonde as she got older. As for her Pokemon, I knew that she had a Jigglypuff and a Psyduck, which was pretty strong with its Psychic attacks.

The buzzer went off, signaling that the contest was starting.

"Good afternoon, everyone! It's time for the Cinnabar Island Contest! Coordinators will compete for the Cinnabar Island Ribbon! I'm your host, Jillian! Now to meet our wonderful judges!" Jillian cried.

"First, we have Shawn Contesta!"

"Good luck to all of you who are competing." he said.

"Next, the President of the Pokemon Fan Club, Mr. Tatsu!"

"Wonderful performances are just waiting to be shown!"

"And lastly, our very own Nurse Joy!"

"I can't wait to see all of the performances in store for us today."

"Now without further ado, let's begin! Entry number one, you're up!"

I stood backstage, watching performance after performance. Finally, it was time for me to go.

"Next up is Michelle!" Jillian cried.

I ran onto the stage and spun.

"Jolteon, spotlight!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball. Jolteon appeared, surrounded by hearts.

"Thundershock!" I cried. Jolteon used Thundershock on the hearts to give them a shield of electricity.

"A wonderful entrance!" Jillian cried.

The hearts broke and sparkles and sparks fell down upon Jolteon.

"Jolteon, use Quick Attack!" Jolteon ran towards the crowd.

"Now, Agility!" With both moves combined, it looked like Jolteon was actually using Double Team.

"Incredible! It's as if Jolteon is using Double Team!" Jillian cried.

"Now jump and use Thunder!" Jolteon jumped and used Thunder. The lighting hit Jolteon as she landed on the ground. Jolteon ran up to me as the crowd cheered.

"Great job!" I cried, rubbing her head.

"A splendid show of skill." Shawn said.

"Incredible!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"A unique performance and exciting to watch." Nurse joy said.

I walked backstage and Amber looked shocked.

"Wow, that was..." she trailed.

"Thanks. We practiced that one for a while." I replied.

After a few more coordinators, it was finally Amber's turn.

"Next up is Amber!" Jillian cried.

Amber ran onto the stage and stopped suddenly.

"Take the stage, Jigglypuff!" Amber cried. Jigglypuff appeared, surrounded by bubbles.

"Hyper Voice!" The bubbles burst and made water droplets fall.

"Now use Rollout!" Jigglypuff started spinning and rolled towards the crowd.

"Up! Use Hyper Voice once more!" Right before Jigglypuff hit the stands, it jumped and got out of Rollout and used Hyper Voice towards the ground. Jigglypuff landed on the ground and posed.

"Wonderful performance." Shawn said.

"Nicely done!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"Great use of showing Jigglypuff's voice." Nurse Joy said.

Amber walked backstage.

"Nice performance." I said.

"Thanks. Just because Jigglypuff is cute, it doesn't mean that it can't battle."

"We will now be taking a break as the judges decide which coordinators will be moving on to the next round." said Jillian.

We stood there waiting when Adam and Jason came backstage to see me.

"You girls both did an amazing job." said Jason.

"I'll say! That fifth ribbon is as good as yours." Adam added enthusiastically.

"Thanks, guys. I sure hope so." I replied.

"You're going for your final ribbon to enter the Grand Festival?" Amber asked. "So am I!"

I shook her hand and said, "May the best coordinator win."

Amber then walked over to the chairs to sit down. Once she was gone, Jason smirked and said, "You should've seen Adam's reaction when Amber came out on the stage!"

"Really? What was it?" I asked.

"His jaw dropped and his eyes-"

"Shut up, Jason! You can't prove anything!" Adam interrupted.

I laughed at my two friends. Even though they were as close as brothers, they still managed to get on each others' nerves now and then.

"Now to show the coordinators who will be moving on!" Jillian cried, interrupting us.

I was surprised to see that I was the third coordinator shown on the screen. Amber was next to the last coordinator.

"Now to show who will be facing off in the battle rounds."

I was going up against a girl named Sasha.

Amber was the first to battle, up against a boy named Randy. Amber was using her Psyduck and she won.

I won against Sasha by knocking out her Charmander. Amber won again and I won again. It was now the final round and I was facing Amber. It was going to be a battle of Water Pokemon, since I was using Poliwhirl and she was using Psyduck.

"It's time for the final match! To my left is Amber, to my right is Michelle! Five minutes on the clock, and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Take the field, Psyduck!" Amber cried.

"Showtime, Poliwhirl!" I cried.

"Poliwhirl, use Water Gun!"

"Psyduck, use Water Gun, too!"

Both moves fought for dominance and eventually canceled one another out.

"Use Confusion!" Amber cried. Before I could call a command, Poliwhirl was surrounded by a blue glow and lifted into the air.

"Poliwhirl, try to use Hydro Pump!" But Poliwhirl couldn't use a move.

"Now!" Amber yelled. Psyduck slammed Poliwhirl down into the battlefield. "When Poliwhirl gets up, use Screech."

"Poliwhirl, use Fountain! Then use Hydro Pump!"

"Fountain? What kind of move is that?"

Poliwhirl shot up from the field using Water Gun, aiming at the ground. Poliwhirl flipped in the air and quickly used Hydro Pump.

"Dodge!" But Psyduck couldn't dodge in time and got hit.

"Now, Poliwhirl! Use Tackle!"

"Stop Poliwhirl with Screech!"

"Fight through it, Poliwhirl!" I cried.

The high pitched noise made me cringe and I saw Poliwhirl stop.

"Zen Headbutt!" Psyduck ran towards Poliwhirl, gaining quickly.

"Water Gun!" I cried. Water Gun stopped Psyduck momentarily, but Psyduck was fighting through it.

"Psyduck, Confusion!" Zen Headbutt stopped and Poliwhirl was surrounded by a blue glow once again. This time, Poliwhirl was lifted higher into the air and was slammed into the ground.

Then the buzzer went off. I snapped my head towards the screen. My points were more than halfway gone while Amber's were only halfway gone.

"The winner is...Amber!"

I thanked Poliwhirl and returned him. Then I walked across the field to Amber.

"Great battle." I said.

"You too."

She walked up to receive her ribbon while I went backstage to change.

"Here is the Cinnabar Island Ribbon. We understand that this is your fifth and final ribbon."

"Yes,"

"We look forward to seeing you in the Grand Festival."

I was outside waiting for Amber to come so I could congratulate her once more. Adam and Jason were waiting, too. As happy as I was for her victory and the fact that she could enter the Grand Festival, I was a little sad that I had lost my second contest in a row and was still one ribbon short of being able to enter the Grand Festival myself.

Amber walked out to meet us after a few minutes and said, "Well Michelle, it was great to battle with you. For now, I'm heading home to rest and practice for the Grand Festival. There's one final contest in Viridian City. That's your last chance to get your final ribbon. Hopefully, we'll see each other again in the Grand Festival."

"Yeah,"

"Well, bye."

"Bye,"

She called out a Pidgeot and hopped onto it, flying away from Cinnabar Island.

"Hey Michelle, be careful around her." Adam said.

"What? Why?" I asked.

"My Aura sensed something strange about her. She's hiding something, she has a secret. Good or bad, I don't know. But we need to be careful around her."

Now that Adam mentioned it, she did act strange at times. Like when we had finished practicing together the other day. We had talked for a while, becoming friends. There were times when I asked her about certain things and she tensed up with a strange look on her face. I didn't want to pry, so I dropped the subject. She was very kind to me and the boys, but she did act a little strange at times. I wondered what she was hiding.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Lance pulled out his PokeGear and dialed Lorelei's number. He had something very important to tell her about Team Rocket.

"Hello, Lorelei? Yeah, it's Lance. Like I told you and the others, I was looking around Kanto, trying to find out about Team Rocket and the Temple of Legends. Well, you'll never guess what I found. A pair of Team Rocket grunts that were spying in the area! I managed to catch one of them while the other got away. The police are bringing him to us to see if he'll tell us anything about Team Rocket. Get the other members of the Elite Four together. We could be on the verge of something big!"

**Author's Note: So for the second contest in a row, Michelle fails to win her final ribbon. She only has one last shot to get it in the Viridian City contest. She also meets Amber and gains a new friend and rival. But Amber has a secret and it could mean big trouble for our heroes!**

**The kids also meet Paul again and discover that he has captured the Legendary Pokemon Latias, the same one that Ash met in Altomare!**

**Behind the scenes, Team Rocket is close to achieving their goal. But Darien is having second thoughts and questioning whether this is what he should be doing. That experience with Adam in the previous chapter could be changing him into a different person.**

**And Lance has found and captured a Team Rocket grunt. The Elite Four may be close to finding either Team Rocket or the Temple of Legends if the grunt tells them what they need to know.**

**Will Michelle win her last ribbon? Will the boys win their gym badges? Who is the Cinnabar gym leader? What will happen to Darien? Will he change his ways? What will Paul do now that he has Latias? Will Team Rocket or the Elite Four find the Temple of Legends first?**

**So many questions and there's only four chapters left until the big showdown! The story is getting closer to its climax, so stay tuned to find out what happens in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	40. Through the Fire

**Author's Note: We haven't updated in over a month? So sorry for the long wait! But here's the next chapter, at last!**

**Normal POV**

Darien stood beside his father, who was sitting behind his desk. A grunt was standing with her head bowed. She was the grunt who had escaped from being captured by Lance, while her partner had been caught. She was very scared. She knew how harsh her boss's punishments could be.

"How could you be so foolish? Do you have any idea what you've done?! Team Rocket could be exposed if the other grunt reveals anything to the police or the Elite Four!" he yelled.

"I-I'm sorry s-sir. It won't happen again." the grunt said nervously.

"You are exactly right. It won't happen again. Scyther...kill her."

Before she could even react, Scyther jumped from behind her and its scythe impaled her from behind, going through her back and out through her chest! A look of shock came over her face as Scyther pulled its scythe out of her body and her lifeless corpse fell to the floor. Blood was pouring from the wound and onto the floor.

"Clean up the blood and dispose of her body." the boss calmly said to the two grunts who were standing by the door, still shocked by what they had seen.

"Why did you do that?" Darien asked.

"It was a suitable punishment for her mistake. Besides, she was just another worthless and expendable grunt." his father replied.

"It was just a mistake, father! She deserved a harsh punishment, yes, but you didn't need to kill her!"

"She had to pay for possibly exposing us. This will also prove to the other grunts that nobody should ever fail me."

"That was proven with Oliver! He failed to capture those kids and you didn't kill him!"

"Well, this will serve as another reminder. She obviously didn't get the message. Besides, as a Pokemon Hunter, Oliver is still of use to me. We have plenty more grunts where she came from."

"It was only her first mistake. You could have done something else to her instead of killing her."

"Darien, it needed to be done. She-"

"It didn't need to be done!" Darien yelled and stormed out of the room.

His father stared at the door. _He's starting to slip from my grasp. His conscience is starting to get the better of him. I'll let him live for now, but if he interferes with our plans or proves to be a risk to us, he'll be taken care of._

Darien stood in the hall, calming down. In his mind, a battle was raging. He was being torn between his duty to his father and Team Rocket, and doing what's right.

_Why is this happening? I've never felt this way before. In fact, why should I even care about what my father does? It's not like I'm any better. I've killed people and Pokemon in cold blood when they're no longer of any use to me. So why am I feeling like this? It's been going on in my mind ever since my encounter with Adam and the others._

He shook his head and headed to his room. He just needed some time to clear everything from his mind. He went into his room and walked to the dresser. He looked at a picture on the dresser that showed himself holding a small girl in his arms. Seeing this picture reminded him of his run-in with Adam.

_When I met my nephew and tried to capture him, I hesitated. They were all scared, I could see the fear in his eyes. Adam...he reminded me of HER. I hesitated because when I looked at Adam, all I could see was her face. It flashed in front of my eyes._

Darien sat there for hours, trying to come to some conclusion about why he was feeling this way. Then his eyes widened in shock as he finally caved in and all of his emotions came flooding out. At last, everything made sense to him.

_What have I done?! How could I have been so foolish? I've caused so much pain and misery throughout my life ever since I became a Pokemon Hunter. I've killed and captured people and Pokemon without a second thought._

As his thoughts ran wild, he felt something on his face. He realized that he was crying. He just stayed there, crying, letting it all out. Then he stood up with a look of determination on his face.

_It's time for me to redeem myself. I swear on my own grave, I will stop everything that my father has planned!_

He then turned on his heel and walked out of his room, a changed man.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

We were walking around Cinnabar Island, looking for the gym.

"When my dad was travelling across Kanto, he had to go to the volcano to battle the gym leader." I said.

"In a volcano? You're kidding. Volcanoes are dangerous places to be." said Michelle.

"Nope, it's the truth. When my dad was here, the gym leader was Blaine. My dad's Charizard was able to beat Blaine's Magmar and he won the badge."

"I think I remember my mom mentioning a volcano once."

"My dad never told me about this gym and I never heard it from your dad, either." said Jason.

"I think we should ask Nurse Joy where the gym is, since we can't find it. It might still be in the volcano..." I trailed. I didn't want to go into a volcano to battle the gym leader.

"I agree,"

We walked to the Pokemon Center and walked up to the front desk.

"Hello. How may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Where's the gym? I heard that it used to be in the volcano."

"Oh, there's a new gym now. Since Blaine died years ago, a new gym leader was chosen and he built a gym in town. Trainers don't have to travel into the dangerous volcano anymore. It's not too far from here. It's all red, you can't miss it."

"Thank you."

She nodded and we left. We walked for a few minutes and came across a building that looked fairly new. The building was a light tan color with lit torches by the doors. The doors were red and the roof was a fiery orange color.

"This has to be the gym." I said.

"It is, there's the sign." Jason said, pointing.

He was right. The sign was on the corner of the building. It was small, but you could see that it read "Cinnabar Gym".

We walked to the door and I pushed it open. We stepped inside and looked around. The battlefield was red with orange lines marking each side. Golden bowls with fire burning in them were lined around the field, hanging on the walls. It was warm in the gym, suitable for a Fire type gym. Pillars were holding up the ceiling of the gym.

"Well, you look very familiar." a voice said.

Footsteps were heard and a figure emerged from behind one of the pillars. I couldn't believe who the gym leader was.

"Well, I think you know why, Harrison. I'm Adam Ketchum, Ash Ketchum's son." I said. "And these are my friends, Jason and Michelle."

Harrison was a few years older than my dad. His hair was light brown and spiked up in the front and he had blue eyes. He was wearing a long sleeve red shirt and black pants with red sneakers. I knew Harrison thanks to my dad's videos that I had watched. He and my dad had battled in the Johto Pokemon League. Harrison was originally from Hoenn, but was now living here in Kanto.

"We're here for a gym battle. I want to battle you first." Jason said, glancing at me.

I nodded my head, showing that it was okay for Jason to go first.

"Okay, I accept."

Michelle and I went to the stands and sat, waiting.

* * *

><p><strong>Jason's POV<strong>

Adam and Michelle were sitting in the stands, waiting for the match to start. The referee ran out and stood by the side of the field in the middle.

"So how many Pokemon do you use?" I asked.

"You can choose. I always let my challengers pick." Harrison replied.

"Okay then, two Pokemon."

"Two Pokemon it is."

Harrison took his side of the field and I took my side. I was going to use Golduck and Graveler. Who would Harrison use?

"The battle between the gym leader, Harrison, and the challenger, Jason, will now begin!" the referee cried.

"Graveler, go!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball. Graveler landed on the field and waited.

"Arcanine, go!" Harrison cried, throwing his Pokeball.

So he was using Arcanine. I had an advantage using Graveler, a Rock type against a Fire type.

"You may go first, Jason." Harrison called.

"Okay. Graveler, use Rollout!" I cried.

"Arcanine, use Extreme Speed to avoid it!" Harrison commanded.

Arcanine moved very fast and avoided Graveler.

"It was smart of you to use a Rock Pokemon to battle a Fire Pokemon." said Harrison. "But you forgot that Rock Pokemon are slow and Arcanines are very fast! You can't hit what you can't catch!"

It looked like Harrison had come up with strategies on to deal with Pokemon that have a type advantage over his Fire Pokemon.

"Graveler keep rolling and turn for another chance!" I yelled. Graveler turned its roll around and headed back for another shot at Arcanine.

"Arcanine, get ready." Harrison said, watching as Graveler rolled towards Arcanine. What was he planning? "Jump and use Hyper Beam!" Arcanine jumped up and avoided the Rollout. Graveler rolled out of the attack and Arcanine fired the Hyper Beam at Graveler.

Graveler was hit and fell down from the impact. Normal attacks aren't very effective against Rock Pokemon but Hyper Beam is still a very powerful attack.

"Now use Dig."

What was he planning? Dig wouldn't hurt Graveler very much. Then I remembered something. Graveler could use Earthquake! And I knew that if Earthquake is used against a Pokemon that's using Dig...

"Use Earthquake, Graveler!" I cried. Graveler stomped the ground, sending shockwaves through the battlefield. Arcanine, along with a bunch of rubble, was blasted up through the floor of the gym, leaving a hole in the floor.

"Arcanine!" Harrison said in a worried voice. Arcanine landed on the ground and stood up, shaking the debris off. That attack had done a lot of damage!

"I don't think you were expecting that Graveler could use Earthquake, were you?" I said confidently. "And when the Pokemon is underground, Earthquake does extra damage!"

"I admit, I took a risk assuming that Graveler didn't know Earthquake. But I won't make that mistake again!" Harrison replied.

"Use Flamethrower!" he said, continuing the battle.

"Dodge and use Rock Throw!" I shouted.

Graveler barely avoided the Flamethrower and used Rock Throw.

"Protect!" Harrison cried. The Rock Throw was useless now that Arcanine was protected. The rocks bounced off of the green shield.

"Use Rollout!" Graveler sped towards Arcanine.

"Jump!" Arcanine jumped in the air and out of the way. But I had an idea.

"You jump, too, Graveler!" I yelled. Graveler leaped into the air, right under Arcanine, and used its Rollout in midair as it struck Arcanine.

Graveler landed on the floor and rolled to its feet, waiting. Arcanine crashed to the floor and stood up, breathing heavily. I could see that Arcanine was almost beaten.

"Graveler, time to wrap this up! Use Rock Throw."

"Protect!" Harrison cried, right as the rocks flew towards Arcanine.

As the rocks bounced off of the shield, he called out, "Hyper Beam!"

"No! Graveler!" I cried. The Hyper Beam hit Graveler, who slid backwards. Graveler stood still, breathing heavily.

"Your Graveler really gave my Arcanine a run for its money. But now it's time to end this." said Harrison. "Use Extreme Speed!"

"Well, if Graveler is going down, then it's going to take Arcanine down with it!" I declared. I waited until Arcanine was within range and yelled, "Graveler, use Explosion!" Graveler began to glow and then there was a huge bang as smoke covered the battlefield.

As the smoke cleared, I saw that Arcanine and Graveler were both lying on the floor, fainted.

"Both Graveler and Arcanine are unable to battle!" the ref cried.

"You did you best, Graveler. Rest now." I said, returning my fallen Pokemon. I attached the Pokeball back to my belt and removed my next Pokeball.

"Good job, Arcanine." Harrison said as he removed his next Pokeball.

"Impressive, Jason, but can you beat my next Pokemon? Magmar, let's go!" Harrison cried.

"Magmar!"

"Go, Golduck!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Golduck!"

"Hydro Pump, Golduck!" I cried.

"Dodge it and use Skull Bash."

Magmar dodged the attack. Harrison's Magmar was really fast! Magmar ran towards Golduck and hit it with its head.

"Use Confusion!" I cried. Magmar was lifted into the air and then slammed into the ground with the Psychic attack.

"Flamethrower!"

"Hydro Pump!"

The two moves collided and created steam. I could easily spot Magmar because of the glow coming from its fiery body and I knew that Golduck could see it, too. I also knew that Golduck was hidden, thanks to the steam.

"Use Zen Headbutt!" I said to Golduck. Its head began to glow.

"Use Skull Bash!" Harrison said to Magmar. Harrison had spotted Golduck with the attack Golduck was using.

Both Pokemon were now running headfirst at each another.

"Fire Punch!" Right as the two moves would have collided, Harrison ordered the Fire Punch attack. It hit Golduck and Golduck was burned. The burn was caused by Magmar's Flame Body ability.

"Golduck!" Golduck cried as the burn took affect.

"Confusion, Golduck!" Magmar was lifted into the air and slammed into the ground once again.

"Fire Blast!" Harrison ordered.

"Golduck, spin and use Hydro Pump!" I cried. Golduck extinguished the Fire Blast.

"Use Hydro Pump again!" I cried. Magmar was doused with water, causing massive damage.

Golduck was breathing heavily and burns covered its body. Magmar stood up shakily. Both Pokemon looked at one another.

"Mag..." Magmar fell to the ground. Fainted.

"Magmar is unable to battle! Which means Golduck wins! The winner is Jason!" the ref cried.

"Way to-" I started, but Golduck fell to the ground, still suffering from its burn. This was my toughest gym battle yet. I had just barely won.

"Way to go, Golduck. Take a nice long rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

Harrison had disappeared to the get the badge and Adam and Michelle joined me.

"Way to go!" Michelle cried.

"Good job," Adam said.

"Thanks, guys."

Harrison returned with an orange cushion. "As gym leader, I present you with the Volcano Badge." he said.

I picked up the Volcano Badge, which was red and in the shape of a flame.

"Badge number seven!" I cried. Only one more to go!

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

"Harrison?" I asked.

"Yes?"

"I would like to make a special request for my gym battle."

He nodded for me to continue.

"I would like to have a one-on-one battle for my badge. I would like to battle against your Blaziken."

"Why Blaziken? He's my strongest Pokemon and challengers almost never request to battle him."

"I'd like to battle Blaziken for a chance to defeat him and win my badge. My dad couldn't beat Blaziken when you two battled in the Pokemon League, so I want to succeed where my dad failed. Besides, it would be following the theme of the gym, since Blaziken is a Fire Pokemon. Also, it would be a memorable way to win my badge." I explained.

Harrison thought for a few minutes, processing what I had just told him.

"Okay, we'll battle tomorrow. But I'm warning you, it won't be easy."

"Thank you so much."

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Officer Jenny was talking to Lance over the video phone. She had just finished interrogating the Team Rocket grunt that Lance had captured.

"We weren't able to learn anything, Lance. That grunt wouldn't say anything about Team Rocket. But we did find something in his pocket." Officer Jenny said.

"What did you find?" Lance asked curiously.

"He had some kind of handheld device that seems to be able to connect to Team Rocket's data network."

"Well, if we can find a way to hack the device, we should be able to remotely get into Team Rocket's database and find all of the information that they have stored. Then maybe we can find Team Rocket's base and the Temple of Legends, too. Can you do it?"

"Sounds like a plan, Lance. We have a special team of researchers and computer experts already lined up and ready to get to work on it."

"Keep in touch with me and the other Elite Four and let me know if you find anything."

"Will do."

**Author's Note: Jason has won his seventh gym badge against Harrison. I bet you didn't think that Harrison would be the gym leader, huh? Adam makes a bold request for his gym battle, asking to battle Blaziken, the Pokemon that defeated his dad's Charizard in the Johto Pokemon League. Adam is hoping to succeed where his dad failed, but is he biting off more than he can chew?**

**Meanwhile, not all is right with Team Rocket. Darien, the boss's own son and one of the Pokemon Hunters has had a change of heart and is determined to stop his father's evil plans after realizing the error of his ways. We also find out the reason why he didn't capture Adam when they last met: he reminds Darien of someone very close to him, a small girl. Who could she be?**

**And the police are now helping the Elite Four in finding Team Rocket and the Temple of Legends. What data will their findings reveal?**

**Will Adam defeat Harrison's Blaziken and win his badge? Who is the girl that Adam reminded Darien of? How far is Darien going to go to stop his father and Team Rocket? What will the Elite Four find out about Team Rocket?**

**There's only three chapters left until the big showdown, so be sure to stay tuned and keep reading Pokemon NG!**


	41. And the Flames

**Author's Note: Can anybody see the reference in this chapter's title? It's linked to the title of the previous chapter. Let us know if you have a guess.**

I stood on my side of the battlefield in the Cinnabar Gym, staring at Harrison, the gym leader. Jason and Michelle sat on the side, watching me. The referee was standing on the side by the middle of the field. I was about to have the toughest gym battle of my Pokemon journey thus far. I knew how difficult it would be, so I had trained continuously yesterday and well into the night in preparation for today. I was so excited that I had barely slept.

"The gym battle between the gym leader, Harrison, and the challenger, Adam, will now begin. Each trainer will use one Pokemon." the referee said.

"Go, Blaziken!" Harrison yelled.

"Go, Pidgeot!" I yelled.

I knew that Blaziken was partially a Fighting type Pokemon and that I would have an advantage using a Flying type Pokemon. Pidgeot had trained with my Machoke the previous day so that we could get an idea of what moves Blaziken might know and how it would move and act in a battle. It was time to see if our training would pay off.

Harrison didn't seem worried. "Using a Flying Pokemon against my Blaziken, huh? Well, don't think that type advantage will win you your badge!" he said.

"I did some special training yesterday with my Pidgeot and Machoke. I'm ready for you, Harrison! I'm going to succeed where my dad failed and defeat the one Pokemon that he couldn't!" I replied confidently.

"Let the battle begin!" the referee announced.

"Blaziken, Flamethrower!" Harrison commanded.

"Pidgeot, use Gust!" I shouted.

The strong wind blew away the fire.

"Fire Punch!" Harrison yelled. Blaziken's fist began burning with fire as it charged towards Pidgeot.

"Pidgeot, fly up out of the way!" Pidgeot ascended into the air, up above the battlefield.

"Blaziken, jump!" Blaziken used its powerful legs to push itself up into the air and landed a direct hit with Fire Punch.

"Blaziken can't fly, but when it can jump as high as that, it doesn't need to." said Harrison.

I had heard about how Blazikens could jump, but to see it for myself? Wow.

"Okay, let's see what you think about this! Pidgeot, spin and use Aerial Ace!" I shouted. Pidgeot spun in the air and zoomed towards Blaziken like a spinning bullet.

"Shoot it down with Flamethrower!"

"Dodge left!"

Pidgeot managed to roll to the side and avoid the flames. Pidgeot continued zooming towards Blaziken and hit it with Aerial Ace.

"I've never seen Flying attacks used like that before!" Harrison said in surprise.

"Not bad, huh? I learned those spinning and dodging techniques from my mom." I said proudly. "Now it's time to show off our new move that we learned yesterday. Pidgeot, use Air Slash!" Pidgeot flapped his wings and a sharp wave of air sped towards Blaziken.

"Deflect it with Blaze Kick!" Harrison yelled. Blaziken's foot began to burn with fire and it kicked the Air Slash, but the attack was just a little too powerful for Blaziken to completely block and it fell backwards, landing on its back.

So even if it didn't do much damage, Air Slash could still knock down Blaziken and temporarily immobilize it. I would keep that in mind for later in the battle.

"Blaziken, Flamethrower!"

"Use Gust to stop it, just like before!"

But what I didn't know was that the Flamethrower was just a distraction!

"Quick Attack, Blaziken!" Blaziken ran at fast speeds around the Gust winds and hit Pidgeot with Quick Attack. Pidgeot fell to the ground but was able to get back up.

"Air Slash!" I yelled.

"Flamethrower!" Harrison yelled.

Both moves flew through the air and met in the middle of the gym, exploding and creating smoke when they hit each other.

"Use Wing Attack!" I shouted as the smoke cleared.

"Use Fire Punch!" said Harrison.

Glowing wings met burning fists and both Pokemon went flying backwards in the ensuing explosion and landed on the floor in pain.

"They're trading blow for blow! This is really intense!" Jason said in amazement.

"Go, Adam! You can do it!" Michelle shouted, cheering me on.

"Blaziken, jump!" Blaziken jumped into the air.

"Pidgeot, here it comes! Fly up!" Pidgeot zoomed into the air.

"Flamethrower!"

"Air Slash!"

Both moves exploded in the air. Both Pokemon were caught in the explosion and fell to the floor, covered in bruises and scratches. Blaziken and Pidgeot managed to get back up, but very slowly.

Then I remembered about what happened to Blaziken earlier in the battle when I used Air Slash. Pidgeot had taken quite a lot of damage so I needed to end this right now with everything that Pidgeot had!

"Pidgeot, use Air Slash and keep it going!" I ordered. Pidgeot kept sending wave after wave of air towards Blaziken. Blaziken blocked the first few with its Blaze Kicks and Fire Punches, but it was eventually worn down and fell to the floor.

But I didn't let up yet! I had to make sure that this was finished for good! Pidgeot kept using Air Slash, pounding Blaziken into the floor, creating a crater. As the dust cleared, Blaziken lay in the crater, motionless. Its body was covered in even more bruises and scratches than before.

"I have to say, Adam, your Pidgeot is really strong, almost as strong as your dad's Charizard was when he battled me. But my Blaziken is still stronger!" Harrison said. "Blaziken, get up!" Blaziken somehow managed to climb out of the crater and back on its feet.

I couldn't believe it! Pidgeot had put everything that he had into that attack! All of those Air Slashes and Blaziken still wasn't beaten?!

"Quick Attack, Blaziken!" Harrison screamed.

"Dodge, Pidgeot!" I yelled.

But Pidgeot was too exhausted from using Air Slash and couldn't dodge in time.

"Now use Blaze Kick!"

"Block it with Wing Attack!"

I knew that Pidgeot couldn't dodge quickly enough, so I hoped that he could block the attack with Wing Attack...and he did. Pidgeot used his wings to block Blaziken's leg and send Blaziken flying backwards.

"Use Aerial Ace!" I said to Pidgeot. Pidgeot managed to get back in the air and sped towards Blaziken.

"Dodge!" Harrison shouted. But Blaziken fell down on one knee and couldn't move because it was too weak. It looked like Blaziken was reaching the end of its rope, just like Pidgeot was.

Pidgeot's Aerial Ace hit its mark and I felt that it was the winning blow...but again, Blaziken got back up!

"It's time to wrap this up! Blaziken, use Fire Punch!" Harrison said.

"Pidgeot, use Aerial Ace!" I said.

Both attacks hit right at the same time and both Pokemon fell to the ground. They had both fainted.

"Both Pokemon are unable to battle. Therefore, this match is a draw!" declared the referee.

I could hardly breathe due to the excitement from the battle. I returned Pidgeot, saying, "You were great and you really hung in there against such a strong opponent."

Harrison returned his Pokemon as well and walked over to me. "I have to admit, you're just like your dad, Adam. You have his drive, his passion for battling, his determination, and his skill. My Blaziken hasn't had a battle that tough in a long time, so you should be very proud of yourself." he said to me.

"Thank you, Harrison. That means a lot coming from you." I replied. "But...since the battle ended in a tie, what happens to the badge?"

"In the event of a tie, the gym leader is the one who decides if the challenger gets the badge or not."

"And what would your decision be for Adam?" Michelle asked as she and Jason joined me.

"Well, let's just say that you gave me the greatest gym battle that I've had in years, you fought with my toughest Pokemon and were able to defeat it. And you beat Blaziken, something that not even your dad could do the first time he faced it. I think you've definently earned that badge."

Harrison held out his hand to me and said, "Adam, I present you with the Volcano Badge."

I took the badge from him and put it in my badge case. "My seventh badge, only one more to go!" I exclaimed.

As we walked out of the gym, I felt very proud of myself. I couldn't wait to tell my dad all about my battle. Then I remembered that my dad was gone and had been missing for almost eight months. I had been hoping to discover where he was, but all I had to go on was my hunch that Team Rocket may have captured him. But I had no idea where their base would be and I wasn't strong enough to face all of Team Rocket in their base, even with my friends' help.

"Are you okay, Adam?" Jason asked.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine." I replied. "So now that we're all done on Cinnabar Island, where should we go next?"

"Well, my final contest is in Viridian City. Maybe we should go there." said Michelle.

"Our final gym battle is there, too." said Jason.

"Pallet Town is north of Cinnabar Island, right on the way to Viridian City. Why don't we stop there first and say hi to our families?" I suggested.

"Why not? We haven't seen them in a while." Jason agreed.

"I've never been to Pallet Town before." Michelle said.

"It's a great place to live and I know you'll like it, too. Jason and I will show you around when we get there. And I'm sure that you want to talk to my mom while we're there, too." I said to her.

"Of course! Your mom is my idol and was my inspiration to be a coordinator!" she said happily.

"Then it's settled. We'll fly to Pallet Town as soon as Pidgeot is feeling better. Let's go to the Pokemon Center." I said to the others. I just wished that I was heading home and bringing dad with me.

A little while later after Pidgeot had healed, we were in the sky, heading home to Pallet Town.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

"Guys, I've received a message from Officer Jenny." Lance said to the other members of the Elite Four. "She and her team of researchers and computer experts were able to hack the device that the captured Team Rocket grunt was carrying. They traced its signal back to Team Rocket's computer mainframe in their base and hacked into their data banks remotely."

"What did they find?" asked Lorelei.

"Not a lot. They began downloading the data but their hack was detected and Team Rocket was able to lock them out." Lance replied.

"Was any of the data helpful? Do we know where their base is?" Karen asked.

"No, they don't know where their base is. But I think you should take a look at what we did uncover."

The five of them looked at the monitor and Lance showed the files that Officer Jenny had sent.

"Look at all of these soldiers under their command! They have enough manpower to take over half of Kanto!" Koga said in amazement.

"That's right. HALF of Kanto. That's why they need the Temple of Legends to summon and capture the Legendary Pokemon to take over ALL of Kanto." said Bruno.

"It also says that Team Rocket has four Pokemon Hunters working for them, too. But how is that possible? Pokemon Hunters always work solo." Lorelei wondered.

"Well, it seems that Team Rocket is much more powerful and influential than we originally thought. We're going to need help if we plan to stop them." Lance said in a worried voice.

"Is there anything else, Lance?" asked Karen.

"Yes, and this is the best part." Lance said as he opened the computer file.

* * *

><p>In Team Rocket's base, a grunt that had been searching the area where Darien had reported that the Temple of Legends may be found, stood before the boss to report their progress.<p>

"How is the search going?" he asked the grunt.

"Sir, I have good news." the grunt replied.

* * *

><p>"What is that?" asked Karen.<p>

"It's a map of Kanto with special coordinates." Lance replied.

"Coordinates to where?"

"Guys..."

* * *

><p>"We have found the Temple of Legends." said the grunt.<p>

* * *

><p>"We have found the Temple of Legends." said Lance.<p>

**Author's Note: OH NO! Both Team Rocket and the Elite Four have found the Temple of Legends!**

**Meanwhile, Adam receives his seventh gym badge from Harrison after his toughest gym battle yet! He defeated Blaziken, something that not even Ash could do! And now, with a sense of pride (but also regret from not being able to find his father), Adam and the others head home to Pallet Town.**

**What awaits our heroes in Pallet Town? Will Team Rocket succeed in their plan to capture the Legendary Pokemon now that they've found the temple? Will the Elite Four be able to stop them? What really happened to Ash?**

**Only two chapters are left until the big showdown with Team Rocket, so stay tuned for the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	42. At Home in Pallet Town

We were flying towards Pallet Town. Michelle and I were on Pidgeot and Jason was on Charizard. I couldn't believe it. We were finally heading back home, but just for a short time. Still, I couldn't wait to see mom again and I knew that Jason wanted to see his parents, too. I also guessed that Michelle would probably love to see my mom.

I looked down and smiled. Pallet Town was coming into view. "There it is!" I cried.

I could see the whole town from up in the air. I saw the lab off to the side with the huge field where all of the Pokemon lived behind it, the Oak household, and my house right next to it. I could also see the other houses that were in Pallet Town. I looked over and Jason had a smile on his face.

"It's really small compared to Cerulean City." Michelle said, looking at Pallet Town with a small smile. "It looks so peaceful, like it's the perfect place to be."

"Pidgeot, land there." I said, pointing to my house. We landed and I faced Pidgeot.

"Thanks, now take a well-deserved rest." I said, returning him.

"Thanks. Rest for now." Jason said, returning Charizard.

I opened the door and walked inside with Jason and Michelle following me.

"Mom? I'm home!" I called. I heard footsteps and my mom appeared from the living room.

"Adam!" she cried happily. She hurried over and hugged me. I hugged back because I knew she had missed me. I hadn't seen her in months, so I missed her, too.

"I didn't know that you three were stopping here." she said, releasing me from the hug.

"It was a surprise." I said.

She smiled and hugged Jason and then Michelle, too. My mom was always a very kind person to everybody that she met, and it showed. (But if you got on her bad side...well, that's a different story.)

"Grandma? Why aren't you home in Twinleaf Town?" I asked, seeing my grandma walk up behind my mom.

"That's no way to say hi." my grandma said.

"Sorry, grandma. But what are you doing here?" I asked in a confused voice as I hugged her.

"Your grandma came over to stay with me until you finished your journey. When I thought that you had died when the S.S. Ketchum sank...it didn't really help me, coupled with the fact that your father is missing. So she came to live with me so that I could talk to her if I needed some emotional support." my mom explained.

Piplup and Buneary came into the room and Pikachu hopped down from my shoulder.

"Pika!" he cried.

"Bun! Buneary!" Buneary cried.

"Pip Pip Piplup!" Piplup cried.

I knew that they were all happy to see one another after all this time. When I looked away from the three Pokemon catching up, I found my mom looking at me with a small smile, but it looked like a sad smile was hidden beneath it. I then realized she was looking at Pichu.

"This is Pichu. I have my very own Electric Pokemon now." I said, rubbing Pichu's head.

"Chu..." he said happily.

"You're becoming more like your father every day." my mom said. Now I knew why she had looked at me like that.

"Well, how about I fix some drinks and snacks and you can tell me about your journey?" my mom asked.

"We want to show Michelle around Pallet Town first." I said.

"I also haven't seen my parents yet." Jason added.

"Okay, we'll talk later." said my mom.

We dropped our backpacks off and left the house.

"I know that I only just got here, but I love it here already!" Michelle cried as we walked to Jason's house. "It's just so quiet and calm. Cerulean City isn't like this. It may be a small city compared to the other ones in Kanto, but with a gym in the city, it's busy and noisy."

Jason opened the door and saw his mom lying on the couch, reading a book. Her Bellossom was there beside her. Bellossom was one of the few Pokemon that she let stay out of their Pokeball. I think it's because of how Bellossom got her together with Gary.

Leaf smiled at us and ran over, hugging Jason. "Why didn't you tell me that you were coming home?" she asked, pulling away.

"I wanted it to be a surprise." Jason replied.

"Is that Bellossom yours?" Michelle asked.

Leaf looked over at Bellossom. "Yes, it is. It was the Pokemon that my husband gave me as a gift when he first asked me to be his girlfriend. He knew how much I liked Grass Pokemon. What he didn't know was that I had secretly loved him ever since we were little kids, and I had been waiting for the day that he would ask me to be with him."

"Even though dad will never admit it, I think he had a secret crush on you, too." Jason added.

"That's so sweet. Bellossom is a beautiful Pokemon. I love the dances that they do." said Michelle.

Suddenly, Bellossom used Sweet Scent and a sweet, soothing aroma hit Michelle and she smiled as she inhaled the scent.

"What was that for?" Michelle asked.

"Bellossom uses Sweet Scent when she meets someone new and senses that they're friendly. I also think that she likes the fact that you called her beautiful." Leaf replied.

"Where's dad?" Jason asked.

"He's at the lab, still working. We can go and see him, though. I know he'll be happy to see you."

We left the Oak house and headed to the lab. We pointed out some things in Pallet Town to Michelle as we walked. As we entered the lab, a few of the scientists and assistants greeted Leaf and Jason and myself. We introduced Michelle to them, too.

We walked to where Gary's office was and Leaf opened the door. Gary was sitting at the desk, typing something. He looked up and saw Leaf and a smile came over his face. When he saw Jason and myself, along with Michelle, he smiled even more. He got up and walked over, hugging Leaf and kissing her forehead. He then hugged Jason and myself.

"Great to see you again, boys. And you're Michelle, right?" he said, looking at Michelle.

"Yes, Professor."

He had only seen Michelle once in person and that was when we all nearly died when the S.S. Ketchum sank. Oh wait, we had been said to be dead, but we weren't.

"How's the journey going?" Gary asked.

"It's going great. We're heading to Viridian City for our last gym badge." Jason said to his dad.

"Good luck,"

"Do you want to see all of the Pokemon outside?" I asked, facing Michelle.

She smiled and said, "Yeah!"

Jason, Michelle, and I walked out of the lab and into the field where all of the Pokemon were.

"Wow..." Michelle said in amazement, looking at all of the Pokemon that were in the field behind the lab. "I've never seen so many different Pokemon all at once before."

"The Pokemon all belong to my parents and Jason's parents." I said.

I removed my Pokeballs and tossed them. "Go and have some fun." I said.

"Good idea." Jason said as he released his Pokemon. "Take a break and relax."

"Time for some fun!" Michelle said, tossing her Pokeballs.

"War! Wartortle!"

I looked over to see a Wartortle wearing sunglasses running up to me. It took me a moment to realize that this was my Squirtle. I had sent Squirtle over to the lab after I caught Haunter in Lavender Town because I was already carrying six Pokemon.

"Squirtle has been training here with your dad's Blastoise ever since you sent him here so his moves wouldn't get rusty. After a while, Squirtle evolved and Blastoise gave his Squirtle Squad sunglasses to him." Gary said from behind us.

I removed my Pokedex and scanned Wartortle. "Wartortle, the Turtle Pokemon. The evolved form of Squirtle. Its long furry tail is a symbol of its age and wisdom."

We walked around the field, showing Michelle our parents' Pokemon. I had never seen Michelle this amazed before. As we walked, we saw that my mom's Togekiss and Michelle's Togetic were talking and my Charmeleon was with my dad's Charizard, being that my Charmeleon was one of Charizard's offspring.

* * *

><p>After showing Michelle the Pokemon at the lab and showing her the other places around Pallet Town, it was supper time. My mom decided to make a big supper which had a lot of my favorite foods. My other grandma, Delia, had come over for supper, too. So it was me, my mom, Michelle, and both of my grandmas.<p>

"Wow, this is great!" Michelle cried as she ate. She had never tasted my mom's cooking before, but I had told her how great it was.

After traveling for so long and only having limited kinds of food, it was great to have my mom's home-cooked food again.

After supper, Jason and his family came over so we could share our stories of our journey. We knew not to tell our parents about our dangerous encounters with Team Rocket, though. We all sat in the living room as we talked. I showed off my badges and Jason did the same and Michelle showed off her ribbons.

"We're going to stay here tonight and then head to Viridian City tomorrow. We're going for our last badge and ribbon." I said.

"I've had four ribbons for a while. I've lost back-to-back contests recently. Viridian City is my last chance to get my fifth ribbon so that I can enter the Grand Festival." Michelle said, looking at her ribbons. She seemed unsure of herself.

"Michelle, I've seen all of your performances on TV and you're an amazing coordinator. You win some and you lose some, but in the end, things will be okay as long as you never give up." my mom said.

"I once went through the same thing that you're going through now. When I was traveling through Sinnoh, I had been on a losing streak. It was thanks to a battle with Maylene, the gym leader, that I finally got some confidence back. I also had my friends to encourage me, too. I finally won again in the Wallace Cup against my friend May."

"Thanks, Dawn." Michelle said, smiling.

"You'll do great in that contest, I know you will."

Then I remembered Darien and what he had said to me when we met. He said that he was my uncle and Dawn's twin brother. I didn't want to believe it, but something inside me made me think it was true. I had to ask my mom about it.

"Mom, are you really an only child?" I asked.

My mom looked at me with a confused look and said, "Why would you ask a question like that?"

"We met someone on our journey and he claimed to be your brother. Is it true?"

"Don't listen to those kinds of things. It was probably just someone who was looking for attention."

I looked at my mom's face. I couldn't see any doubt in her eyes, so she had to have been telling the truth, which meant that Darien was lying to me...so why couldn't I ignore that feeling in the pit of my stomach that told me he was right?

Then, in the corner of my eye, I saw a guilty look on my grandma Johanna's face. But the look was only there for an instant before her face went back to normal. Was there something that she wasn't telling my mom and I?

My mom looked at my badge case, which was on the table. She smiled at me and looked at the badges and then back to me. "Your dad would be so proud of you." she said softly. She looked down at her hands sadly.

"Has there been any news about him?" I asked.

"No..."

I frowned. Only four more months until the tournament would be held where a new Pokemon Master would be named. Four more months until Paul could possibly take my dad's title.

"Oh...we've encountered someone you and dad met when you were traveling through Sinnoh." I said.

"Who?"

"Paul," Jason answered.

"Paul..."

"He's planning on winning the upcoming tournament and taking dad's title as Pokemon Master. He's called dad weak and pathetic."

"He hasn't changed a bit after all these years." my mom muttered.

"He also caught a Latias so that he can beat dad if he does come back." I added.

"What?!"

"He doesn't have what it takes to be a Pokemon Master. For one, you have to beat the current holder of the position unless the league says otherwise, and two, he doesn't have the right attitude. You have to have the right attitude to be a Pokemon Master...that was a lesson that I learned too late when I was on my Pokemon journey." Gary said.

"He's always been trying to be better than your father, even when we were traveling. He was always beating Ash, but then in the Pokemon League, their biggest match ever, Ash won. Paul...I thought that Ash had earned a little respect from him, but it seems that it's disappeared." my mom said.

"Maybe that's because he's gone missing." said Leaf.

"Most likely. Paul...he was very focused on things that revolved around him."

"So he was always mean?" Michelle asked.

"Yes. Well, I never saw him being nice. When he first met Ash, he called him weak and pathetic because Pikachu was missing and he only had a Starly."

"He treats his Pokemon cruelly. He shows them no appreciation." said Michelle.

"That's just how he is."

"How he captured Latias is what I want to know." Leaf asked.

"He heard the legend of Latias and Latios in Altomare and captured Latias since Latios wasn't around." Jason said.

We continued to share stories when the phone started ringing.

"Excuse me," my mom said, getting up and going into the other room.

I looked around and everyone was talking amongst each other about different things. I wanted to know who was calling...maybe it was some news on my dad.

So I sneaked away and walked to the room where my mom was and stopped, listening through the door, which was slightly open.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Dee Dee. It's been a while."

"What do you want, Kenny?"

"The same thing that I wanted last time. Another chance with you."

"No!"

"Ash has been missing for eight months now! He's as good as dead!"

"He's not dead and don't you dare say that he is, Kenny! Do you hear me?"

"I hear you, and you sound broken. You look broken, too. I can help you, Dawn."

"Shut up!"

"Dawn...I love you. Please give me another chance. We can be a family together. You, me, and Adam."

"No! I don't want a family with you, Kenny! I'll never want a family with anyone but Ash! I don't love you and I never will. I only love you as a brother, if that, since you keep bugging me! Ash is alive and I know it! I love him, not you. Get it through your head, Kenny...I'm Dawn Ketchum and it's not going to change. Ever."

There was a silent pause.

"It was worth a shot, but you're a fool in love with a dead man. There's no reason to try and convince you to love someone else, since you're too stubborn to see the truth. I'll always love you...and maybe I can move on since this is the third time you've rejected me."

"Goodbye."

There was no movement from inside the room. I pushed the door open and closed it, making my mom look up.

"Did you-" she started.

"Yes. I heard all of it. What's going on?" I asked. Kenny said that he had called my mom once before for the same reason that he called this time. Kenny was trying to break up our family and convince mom that dad was dead? As if she didn't have enough to worry about already! I had no idea that this was happening to my mom while I was away!

My mom sighed and motioned for me to come over. I walked over to her and waited.

"Kenny called me once before while you were away. It was when your dad had been missing for three months. He was asking me for another chance with him. You see, in Sinnoh, he had a battle with your dad and after the battle, Kenny told me that he had feelings for me. He got turned down then and when he called me a few months ago, he got turned down again."

"What did he say?"

"He told me that I wouldn't be able to take care of you by myself. He also told me that you shouldn't grow up without a father."

"Dad grew up without his father and he turned out fine. And he's a great dad to me."

"I know, sweetie. But Kenny thinks differently."

"Mom...you wouldn't ever...?" I trailed, unable to finish my sentence.

My mom made me face her and she looked at me.

"Adam, I could never love anyone else but your dad. I don't care if something was to happen, I love your father and only him. No one could replace him, no one. I don't care if I was told that I had to marry someone else or I would be killed, I still wouldn't do it. Your father is the only one for me and will always be the only one for me."

Mom paused and then softly said, "No one could even come close to replacing him. I promise you, Adam, I could never give my heart to anyone else. When we got married, I told him to keep my heart. I said that I'll give my heart to him and I'll never take it back. Never."

I smiled and hugged my mom. "I miss him, mom." I said softly.

"I do too, sweetie. More than anyone could ever know. He's out there somewhere. I can't explain how I know that, it's just a feeling that I have." she said, kissing my head.

I had to find my dad. After finding out about this incident with Kenny, I just had to. I needed people to stop trying to break my family up. Finding my dad was the only way to stop Kenny and Paul.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

In Team Rocket's base, grunts were loading up helicopters and ships with Pokemon and supplies. Since the discovery of the Temple of Legends, they had begun preparing the final phase of their plan: activate the temple to summon the Legendary Pokemon and capture them using the Hunters' arm cannons.

The boss was in his office and had just called for the Pokemon Hunters.

"Darien, Mya, Oliver, you are to assemble crews for your ships and head to the Temple of Legends with the grunts." he instructed.

"Yes, sir."

"Michael, you will use your ship to fly to Pallet Town and remain hidden and in position. In case our "prisoner" doesn't cooperate, you will be our insurance so that he'll change his mind. But don't make a move unless I give you the signal."

"Understood."

"I will personally escort our prisoner to the temple in my own helicopter. You all know what part he plays in this. Tomorrow, we will control all of Kanto. Dismissed."

The four Hunters turned and left. Little did the boss know that Darien was a changed man and was planning on sabotaging the mission. And little did anyone know that another person had secretly listened to the conversation and was sneaking away from the base, heading towards Pallet Town.

* * *

><p>"Officer Jenny, based on the data you sent us, if we're going to have any chance of stopping Team Rocket when they have this many Pokemon and troops, we're going to need help from every cop in Kanto!" Lance said over the phone.<p>

"Understood, Lance. We should have the force assembled by tomorrow. We'll meet you at the temple. Let's just hope we get there before Team Rocket does."

"And if we find Team Rocket, then we'll probably find Ash, too."

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

I gave my mom one final hug and she kissed my forehead. We waved goodbye to our families and walked out of Pallet Town. After a little while, Pallet Town was behind us in the distance.

After seeing Wartortle for the first time since he evolved, I decided to bring him with me on our journey once again and leave Machoke and Haunter at the lab.

Pichu had officially been captured by me, too. Ever since he started following me from the Pikachu Forest, I hadn't captured him with a Pokeball because I already had six Pokemon and he would be trapped inside until I sent back another Pokemon and I knew that Pichu wouldn't like to be stuck inside a Pokeball for that long. So I had captured him yesterday, meaning that he was no longer a wild Pokemon and I kept him out of his Pokeball so that he could hang out on my shoulder with Pikachu.

The three of us had secretly agreed that since the tournament wasn't for another four months, after we got our badges and ribbon, we would keep searching for my dad, focusing solely on that. We wouldn't be heading home until we found him.

Little did we know that something was about to happen. A Pokemon cried from the sky and I looked up to see an Aerodactyl swooping down towards us. Pikachu's cheeks sparked with electricity and Jason and Michelle were ready to throw a Pokeball if needed.

The Aerodactyl landed and a man in a black cloak with a hood hiding his face was on its back. This person looked familiar. Who was he?

"You saved us from Hunter Mya's ship." Michelle realized.

"Yeah...you teleported us out." Jason added.

I couldn't recall who it was that got us out since I was barely alive, let alone conscious at that time.

"Yes, I am the one that teleported you three from Mya's ship. I am also the man with the Fire Pokemon that saved you two boys in Mt. Moon. I also rescued you three from the S.S. Ketchum when it sank." he said. "You must come with me."

"Why?" I asked.

He paused and turned his head so that he was looking right at me even though I couldn't see his face. "Because...I know where your father is."

**Author's Note: After stopping in Pallet Town and meeting their families again, Adam learns about Kenny and realizes the only way to stop both Kenny and Paul is to find his dad. His quest is now more important than ever! But Johanna seems to be hiding something from everybody, as Adam saw when he asked about Darien.**

**But as our heroes are on their way to Viridian City, they are stopped by the mysterious man who has been protecting them throughout their journey. Not only that, but he claims to know where Ash is!**

**Meanwhile, Team Rocket and the Elite Four are racing against time and against each other to get to the Temple of Legends.**

**The next chapter will feature the big showdown with Team Rocket to decide the fate of Kanto! Enemies will become friends, secrets will be revealed, characters' pasts will be uncovered, legends will come true, and help will come from an unlikely person!**

**Will this be the end? Or just the beginning? Will the world be saved? Or will there be no world left to save? Who will live? Who will die?**

**Find out the answers to all of these questions in the next exciting chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	43. Characters' Pasts, Team Rocket's Plan!

"I know where your father is." the man in the black cloak said to me.

Time seemed to stop for an instant. I couldn't believe what I was hearing! He knew where my dad was? But that's impossible! How could he know?

"This could be a trap. How could you know something that everyone else has been spending eight months trying to figure out?" I asked cautiously. "We need more information before we can trust you."

"You can start by telling us where Ash has been all this time." said Jason.

"He's been captured by Team Rocket. But I can't say any more. Not here." said the man. "I know that you don't trust me, so I won't force you to come. But if you want to know the truth about your father, about Team Rocket, and what they're planning, then follow me."

Team Rocket had captured my dad? Then our hunch was right after all! I knew that his disappearance and Team Rocket's reappearance weren't a coincidence.

"What should we do?" Michelle asked.

"I don't like this guy, but if he has any information about my dad, I'm going to follow him and find out." I said. "We've been searching for him and have had very few leads. Now, an opportunity comes and finds us."

"This seems a little too convenient, but what have we got to lose? Let's go with him and hear what he has to say." said Jason.

"Alright, we'll come with you. But don't try anything funny." I said.

"What if I was to tell you more about Team Rocket and their plans first? Would you trust me then?" he asked. "After all, this information could prepare you for what's going to happen very soon."

"'Very soon?' How soon?" asked Michelle.

"As in, only a couple of hours. Team Rocket's plans are almost complete. That's why I came to find you before it's too late."

"Okay, take us to my dad and tell us about Team Rocket as we walk." I said to him.

"Their base is hidden in the forest west of Viridian City. Let's go." he said and started walking. We followed him from a distance, just to be safe.

"Let me start at the beginning. When Ash Ketchum and the Elite Four found and destroyed Team Rocket's main base so many years ago, their leader, Giovanni, escaped along with a few other grunts, while the ones who weren't captured scattered across Kanto. It took a long time, but he was eventually able to resurrect Team Rocket.

"But Giovanni wanted to make sure that Team Rocket would never be defeated again like it had been in the past. So he hired a Pokemon Hunter to assist him in capturing enough Pokemon to build an unstoppable army. In return, he promised the Hunter that he would rule Kanto alongside him, and eventually, the whole world...but then, Giovanni found out about the Temple of Legends."

"The Temple of Legends?!" I exclaimed.

"You know about it?" the man asked.

"I heard some guards on Mya's ship talking about it. I didn't hear what exactly it is, though." I replied.

"Thousands of years ago, people and Pokemon lived together in peace throughout the world. The Legendary Pokemon had a special bond to a different human that they each chose for themselves. These people had the power of the Legendary Pokemon at their disposal, having the ability to use them in battle. The Legendary Pokemon knew that they would use their powers to protect the world. But these people could only summon their Legendary Pokemon at a special shrine called the Temple of Legends. These people used a special type of Aura to activate the temples.

"When Giovanni found out about the temple and what it could do, he realized that with the Legendary Pokemon under his control, the world would belong to Team Rocket in no time! So he immediately ordered his troops to begin searching for this ancient temple. But when the hired Pokemon Hunter learned that Giovanni wanted him to capture the Legendary Pokemon, he realized that all of that power could be his and was ripe for the taking!

"So the Pokemon Hunter turned against Giovanni and killed him, establishing himself as the new leader of Team Rocket. And even though it seemed impossible at the time, he made Team Rocket bigger, stronger, and more evil than ever before! Any members of Team Rocket that did not swear total allegiance to him as their new leader were killed. Those who were seen as weak or insignificant like Jessie, James, and Meowth were also killed."

"So Giovanni isn't behind Ash's kidnaping?" Jason asked.

"No, that was after the Pokemon Hunter became the leader of Team Rocket." the man answered. "And he picked up right where Giovanni had left off, trying to find the Temple of Legends to capture the Legendary Pokemon. To accelerate his plans and capture more Pokemon for his army, he brought in four new Pokemon Hunters to serve directly under him and act as his main soldiers: Oliver, Mya, Michael, and Darien."

"Okay, so that explains Team Rocket's plans, their history, what the Temple of Legends is, and why they want to find it. But how do you know all of this? Where do YOU fit into this story?" asked Michelle.

The man stopped walking all of a sudden and removed the hood covering his head, revealing his face. He was about the same age as my mom and had smooth, dark brown hair and a pair of eyes that seemed very familiar.

"Well, it's time that I show you who I am. My name is Antonio, son of Giovanni." he announced.

"You're...Giovanni's son? You're a member of Team Rocket!" I said angrily. Pikachu seemed ready to shock him.

"Keep walking and let me explain." he said, remaining calm, despite knowing that he could've been hurt by us by revealing who he was.

"After the collapse of Team Rocket all those years ago, I left my old life as my father's executive behind. I gave myself a new name and a new identity. But when I fell in love with a beautiful young woman and we married, I realized that for the first time in my life, everything felt right. I was truly happy and content with my new life. I forgot about my past and began enjoying life to the fullest. Eventually, my wife gave birth to a baby girl and our family was complete.

"But when our daughter was a year old, I received a letter from an unknown person who told me to meet him in a secret location. That person...turned out to be my father. He said that he had resurrected Team Rocket and wanted me to come and help him once again. But I refused, since I had found a new and better life for myself and didn't want to help my father's evil plans anymore. But then, he threatened to kill my wife and daughter if I didn't cooperate, so I had no choice but to leave them behind and come with him. Before I left, I told my family that I would be going away for a long time and would probably never see them again. I also said that I'd always love them.

"But it wasn't long after I went back with my father that the Pokemon Hunter killed him and took over Team Rocket. As his son, I was one of the people that he wanted dead, but I managed to escape. However, he knew about my family and killed my wife instead. I was too late to save her, but I found my daughter alive. I took my daughter to live with my wife's mother. That was many years ago and I haven't seen my daughter since then. I don't know where she is, what's happened to her, or if she's even alive. If she IS alive, I think that she might be around your age by now.

"After the death of my wife, I swore that Team Rocket would pay for everything that they had done! I went in undercover, trying to stop them for good but I couldn't do very much or else I would be caught. But I managed to slow their efforts to capture Pokemon and finding the Temple of Legends.

"But I can't stall them any longer. They've found the temple and will be controlling all of Kanto in a few hours unless someone stops them. That's why I came to find you. I can't stop them alone. Besides, I think you guys owe me for saving your lives all those times."

"If you really want Team Rocket gone and know where my dad is, then I'm with you." I said boldly. I believed his story about his past and I knew that he was on our side. If he was actually with Team Rocket and wanted us captured, he would've done it already.

"Me too." agreed Jason.

"And me." said Michelle.

"But there's still one more thing that you haven't told us. Why did Team Rocket capture my dad?" I asked Antonio.

"It all has to do with the Temple of Legends." he replied. "As I told you, thousands of years ago, the Legendary Pokemon had a special bond to a different human that they each chose for themselves. These people had the power of the Legendary Pokemon at their disposal, having the ability to use them in battle. But these people could only summon their Legendary Pokemon at the Temple of Legends using a special type of Aura to activate the temple.

"But that was thousands of years ago and the people with those abilities are dead. But the new leader of Team Rocket found out something else. Once every one hundred years, a human with special Aura powers is born with the ability to summon all of the Legendary Pokemon. This person has many names, spoken by many different Legendary Pokemon, but his most common name is known as...the Chosen One."

Suddenly, everything became clear to me. "My dad mentioned to me that he was once called the 'Chosen One.' So they captured my dad because they knew that he was the only one who was able to activate the temple for them!"

"That's right. And they've been trying to capture you three as well because they know that Ash will never give in to them so they were going to use you three as prisoners to make sure that he cooperates. But you've managed to beat them and escape every single time."

* * *

><p>After a while, we came out of the forest to see a huge base built on top of a large mountain. It had a huge "R" on the front and was colored black and silver.<p>

"Wow...it's huge." we said in amazement.

"The base also has rooms and tunnels and hallways going down inside the mountain." said Antonio. "But there's a secret door on the side of the cliff."

He pushed a rock on the side of the mountain and a sliding door opened.

"Okay, I have a plan." he said, pulling out three maps. "This is a map of the whole facility. One for each of you."

He began pointing out things as he talked. "This is where the holding cells are. If they haven't moved your dad yet, he'll still be held in there."

"I'll go there. If anyone's going to save my dad, it's me." I said confidently.

"Undoubtedly, they've removed the Pokeballs that he was carrying when they captured him, along with anything that he had." Antonio continued. "They should be here in the Pokeball storage room somewhere. It's where all of the spare Pokemon for their army are kept."

"I'll head there." said Jason.

"Lastly, in case Ash has been moved from his holding cell, they've probably taken him here to the hanger bay where all of their ships and helicopters are, so that they can transport him to the Temple of Legends. One of you needs to go there to keep an eye on what Team Rocket's doing. They could be ready to leave at any time." he concluded.

"Looks like that's my job." said Michelle. "What about you?"

"Ever since I've gone undercover, I've been developing a bomb in one of Team Rocket's special labs. What they don't know is that I'm planning to use it to destroy them all! Once we're inside, I'll go and get it set up. It should be big enough to blow through the entire diameter of the mountain, making the rock unstable. The mountain will crumble, causing massive rock slides and the base will rip apart and collapse with it." Antonio answered.

"Here, take these to keep in touch." he said, handing us black receivers that attached to our ear. We put them on and turned them on.

Antonio took off his cloak and threw it to the ground, revealing a Team Rocket outfit underneath. "Nobody will recognize me in my disguise. You three will have to be careful sneaking around. Most of Team Rocket will probably be loading their ships but there will still be a few in the halls, staying behind to guard the base when the others leave."

"We each have a Ghost Pokemon that knows Hypnosis." said Jason. "If we bump into any guards that we can't get past, we'll put them to sleep."

"Good thinking. Well, you all know what to do. The fate of Kanto rests in our hands. Good luck." Antonio said as we entered the base.

_Dad, I know that you're in there. Hang on, I'm coming to save you._

**Author's Note: You thought that this would be the big showdown with Team Rocket? This is only the first part of the showdown!**

**A lot was revealed in this chapter! Adam and the others now know the truth about Team Rocket and their plans, as well as realizing why Team Rocket captured Ash and the secret of the Temple of Legends!**

**The kids and their unlikely ally, Antonio, are now heading right into Team Rocket's base to rescue Ash! But what awaits them inside?**

**Find out in the next suspenseful chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	44. From Bad to Worse

I watched as Antonio walked down the hall without a second glance.

"Good luck," I said to Jason and Michelle.

"You too,"

We split up and I looked down at the map. I was in a hallway off to the left of the main entrance. The holding cells were a floor below me. I was thankful that we had stopped at home just yesterday because my grandma Delia had given us some pens. I put an "X" where the holding cells were and turned back around and headed down the hall that Antonio had just gone down.

I was being careful as I walked. I had to be careful, extremely careful, or else Team Rocket would hear me coming. One mistake and it would be over.

"Pi..." Pikachu said nervously.

I stopped and heard footsteps echoing through the quiet hall. I backtracked and hid in an empty room.

"We'd better hurry. They're almost ready to go to the temple." one grunt said.

The other nodded. Once they were gone, I released my breath.

"I should have Haunter come out." I said to myself.

"Haunt-"

"Shh..." I said.

Haunter looked at me questioningly.

"I need you to be quiet. Follow me and if I say 'Now', I need you to use Hypnosis. Do you understand?"

"Haunt."

"You should also turn invisible so the guards won't see you coming."

Haunter faded away and I stepped out from the room and continued on my way.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Darien stood in a bedroom in his ship. He crossed the room and stopped, kneeling in front of a small eight-year-old girl. She had turned eight not long ago.

"Listen, I'll be going away soon and I might not see you for a very long time." he said.

"Why?" she questioned, tilting her head.

"I have something important to do."

He stood up and looked at the small girl. "When I leave, don't follow me. Stay here where it's safe."

"Okay."

"If I don't come back for you...I want you to go to Pallet Town and find a woman named Dawn. You can trust her."

"Why wouldn't you come back?"

He ignored her question. "I want you to do that for me. Can you do it?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good."

Darien left the room and closed the door behind him. He had his reasons for doing this. He was going to try to stop his father and probably would not live to see another day.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

I had gotten to the floor where the holding cells were and just my luck, there were grunts. I crept up to the corner, peered out around it, and I quickly pulled back. Four grunts, all in front of the holding cell room and it didn't seem like they were going to be moving anytime soon.

Dad had to be in there. It had four grunts standing outside it, after all.

"Now." I said. I peered out and watched as Haunter appeared and used Hypnosis. The grunts fell to the ground, sound asleep.

"Thanks, Haunter." I said.

I pulled the door open and walked inside. I checked around and found it empty. The cells had no prisoners in them.

"No..." I was too late. They had moved my dad already.

I sighed and pressed the button on the radio receiver on my ear that Antonio had given me.

"My dad's not in the holding cells. They must have already moved him or are moving him to the ships." I said. "Michelle, my dad might be heading your way. Let me know if you see him."

"I will, Adam. I'm almost to the hanger." she replied.

"Thanks, I'll meet you there."

I walked out of the room and stepped around the grunts.

* * *

><p><strong>Jason's POV<strong>

I stopped and looked down at the map. The storage room was be close by. I retraced my steps, went back the way I had gone, and found it.

"It was to my right." I muttered.

I stepped out and walked through the hall. I had called out Haunter so that if I needed to act fast, I could. I stopped and peered around the corner. All clear.

"Haunter..."

I glanced at Haunter. I was approaching a door and it started to open. Someone was coming out!

"Hypnosis..." I said softly as I back-stepped to get behind the corner. A grunt fell to the ground, asleep. That was close, I could have gotten caught.

I peered into the room that the grunt had come from and saw that this was the storage room. I walked in and shut the door behind me. I ran over to the nearest cabinet and looked around. I checked the other shelves and more cabinets and found Pokeballs belonging to Team Rocket, but nothing that belonged to Ash.

Then I realized...they wouldn't hide his things where all of the grunts would have access to them. It would be a place where only certain people had access. A safe place. I looked around the room and as I stared at the cabinets and shelves, I saw something. One of the shelves was on wheels. I walked over to the shelf and pushed it aside to find...a safe.

"Aha!" I cried. Now I just needed to get it open.

"Antonio, do you know the combination to a hidden safe in the storage room?" I asked.

"Sixty, thirty, zero."

That was a strange combination. I put the numbers in and the safe opened. I looked inside and saw five Pokeballs and a Pokedex that was an older version than mine. This was Ash's Pokedex and his Pokeballs. I took my backpack off and put the things into my bag.

"I found Ash's Pokeballs and his Pokedex." I said over my radio earpiece. I just wished that Adam could have found his dad when he went to the holding cells.

"Guys, come to the hangers, quick! I found Ash!" Michelle cried.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

"Great, Michelle! Keep us informed." I said.

I couldn't believe it. We were close to getting my dad out of here! Without him, Team Rocket wouldn't be able to activate the temple! I had to be careful, though.

I looked at the map and found the hangers. Not too far. As I stopped to see if the coast was clear, I heard footsteps approaching from behind me. I spun around and sighed in relief to see that it was only Jason.

"You're lucky I realized that it was you, Adam." he said.

"Same to you, Jason." I replied.

We got through the door to the hangers and sneaked past the grunts that were around a few crates. This hanger was huge! All four of the Hunters' ships were here, along with several helicopters and many trucks.

"Guys..." a soft voice said. We looked to our left and saw Michelle hidden behind a stack of crates. We hurried over to her and hid with her. Our Ghost Pokemon appeared behind us and we returned them.

I took notice that there were Pokemon with glowing red eyes boarding the ships. Those poor Pokemon were being mind-controlled by Hunter Michael. Speaking of Pokemon Hunters, all were present except Darien. I scanned the area once again and he wasn't there.

"All of the Pokemon Hunters are there but Darien." I said softly.

"I noticed. And the Pokemon are being controlled like last time." Michelle said.

We stayed hidden and Michelle raised her hand and pointed up towards a helicopter. I followed her finger and Jason did, too. Standing by the helicopter was a figure who had his arms tied together. That figure was...my dad.

I stared at his appearance. His clothes that he had been wearing on the day that he disappeared had faded in color and were worn and torn. His skin wasn't tanned like it always was, it was now pale and he was a lot skinnier. His hair was a lot longer too, falling in front of his eyes and grazing his shoulders in the back, and a thick beard was on his face. Eight months of being held captive and this is what my dad looked like. Despite his appearance, I knew it was him and even if I had doubts, the z's under his eyes made me know that it was definitely him.

I went to move, but Jason grabbed my arm.

"They'll see you." he said.

"We can't get caught when we're this close to saving him." said Michelle.

I looked at my dad. We were this close and we couldn't rescue him! I frowned, but nodded. I had to think before I acted. Like Jason had said when Michelle was captured by Oliver, I needed to think instead of trying to act.

"Antonio, my dad is being taken to the Temple of Legends. We're too late to rescue him." I said.

"Okay. You three are going to need to sneak aboard one of the Hunters' ships and follow them to the temple. It's not too late to save him. I'll be staying behind to make sure that the bomb goes off once you leave."

"Okay,"

"This is where we part ways. I'll make sure that the bomb goes off once you're gone. And...If you three ever see my daughter on your journey, could you tell her that I'm alive and that I love her and miss her, and I hope that she achieves her goals in life? She's probably around your ages by now."

"We promise we'll tell her if we find her. What's her name?" Michelle asked.

"Her name is...Amber."

Then the line cut out and we looked at one another in shock.

"Amber? The girl that we met on Cinnabar Island?" Jason asked softly.

No wonder she was acting strange when we met her. Her mom had been killed, her dad wasn't around, and she was raised by her grandma. She didn't know that her dad was alive and she didn't know who her family was. She was hurt and felt betrayed by her father, Antonio.

"We have to tell her when we see her again. She deserves to know." Michelle said.

"We will," I agreed.

"We owe it to Antonio for helping us." Jason added.

We looked around. We were close to one of the Hunters' ships. "Okay, now all we have to do is get onto the ship. We've done it before and we can do it again." I said.

We moved quietly from crate to crate, being careful to stay low and hidden. We made it to the crates that were in front of the ramp that lead onto one of the ships. Glancing around, we saw no one looking at us.

We stepped out, only to find boots that lead up to Darien. Before we could do anything, Pikachu and Pichu were shot and turned to stone. We didn't even have time to try and run because grunts ran up behind us. They grabbed our arms and put them behind our backs and tied our arms tightly. I heard Michelle cry out when the grunts tied her arms. Our earpieces were also removed and Darien crushed them under his foot.

Darien started walking and we were pushed, forced to follow him. We were lead to another part of the hanger and a helicopter was behind the people standing in front of Darien. I felt my blood run cold. Standing in front of Darien was Pokemon Hunter Oliver, Mya, and Michael, and a man that I guessed was the leader of Team Rocket.

The leader was about my grandma Johanna's age, maybe a coupe of years older. He had grey hair and was wearing a charcoal colored suit with a dark gray button up shirt and a dark tie. His eyes looked cold and cruel.

"I captured the three children as you requested." Darien said.

"Great work, Darien. You are to bring the children to the temple on your ship, since everything is now ready and loaded." he said.

Darien nodded his head. The leader stepped back, looking at the other Hunters and nodded. He then got into the helicopter. It was then that I realized that was where my dad was, in that helicopter with Team Rocket's leader.

"Enjoy the last few hours that you three have left to live." Oliver said.

"Because once this mission is over...we will kill you." Mya added.

"As slowly and as painfully as possible for all of the trouble that you have caused Team Rocket." Michael finished.

We were forced to follow Darien onto his ship. We were shoved into an empty room and I heard the door lock. I looked and saw Pikachu and Pichu in glass domes, still turned to stone. We had escaped all of the other times that we'd been captured, but this time, there was no way that we could escape. Our luck had finally run out.

Michelle sat down against the wall and stared at the floor. I saw that her eyes were glassy with unshed tears.

Jason sighed and sat down. His face showed that he was angry, but hidden underneath that anger was fear.

Where did Darien even come from? We had checked from behind the crates and he wasn't around.

It looked like things had taken a turn for the worse. I was glad that I had gotten to see my mom yesterday...because that would probably be the last time that I would ever see her. All we needed was some hope and a little bit of a fighting chance, but with our arms tied and Pokemon as stone, we didn't stand a chance.

I looked at Pikachu and Pichu with sadness. I sighed and sat down.

We were going to be the reason that Team Rocket wins, the reason Team Rocket takes over the world. My dad wouldn't have a choice with our safety at stake. He would do anything to keep us safe.

_I'm sorry, dad. I'm sorry that we're going to cause you to do this. I'm sorry that I couldn't rescue you in time. And most importantly, I'm sorry that I couldn't reunite you and mom...and I won't be able to stop Kenny from trying to rip our family apart. I'm so sorry, dad._

**Author's Note: We've been posting these chapters really fast, haven't we?**

**Adam and his friends find Ash but are too late to save him and have gotten themselves captured by Team Rocket, unable to escape. Darien was the one who captured the kids, too. Did he really change his ways or not? And who is the girl on his ship that he was talking to?**

**Also, the kids learn that Amber, a girl that they've met on their journey, may be Antonio's daughter. Is this the secret that she's been hiding from them?**

**Now, Team Rocket is heading for the Temple of Legends with nothing standing in their way! Has Team Rocket finally triumphed? Is this the end for Kanto...and for the story, too?**

**Stay tuned and find out in what may be the final chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	45. The Temple of Legends

**Normal POV**

Police cars and trucks were speeding along a dirt road as helicopters flew above them. These vehicles were carrying Lance, the Elite Four, and nearly the entire Kanto police force! After learning the location of the Temple of Legends, Lance had suggested that due to the enormous size of Team Rocket's forces, Officer Jenny would need all the help that she could get.

"We're getting close. It shouldn't be long now." said Lance as he looked at his map.

"Look over there!" exclaimed Bruno. In the distance, they saw Team Rocket's ships flying off to the side, heading towards the same place that they were.

"It's Team Rocket! They're ahead of us and are going to reach the temple before we do!" shouted Karen.

"Officer Jenny, can we go any faster?" asked Lance

"I'm afraid we can't." she replied. "Most of our forces are traveling on the ground below us and can't go as fast as we can. The helicopters can get there faster, but if we don't wait for the others, we won't have enough people to battle and stop Team Rocket. They'd overpower us in no time! We attack together."

"Okay, we need to make a plan." said Koga.

"Well, by the time we get there, Team Rocket will undoubtedly be guarding the entrance to the temple and will be heavily armed with Pokemon. They'll be distracting us from the other members that are inside, activating the temple." said Lorelei.

"You're right. We need to find a way to get around them and get inside. We need to stop them from activating the temple at all costs." said Karen.

"The officers and I will hold Team Rocket off outside the temple. With their attention on us, Lance, you and the Elite Four will be able to sneak around them in the confusion and get inside." Officer Jenny suggested.

"Alright. But just to be safe, I want Lorelei and Koga to stay and help you battle. This may be too much for even the police to handle." said Lance. "Lorelei, Koga, take no chances. If the fighting gets too dangerous for you or the police, use all six of your Pokemon at once if you have to."

"We will, Lance. We'll try to flank them to surprise them." said Koga.

"Meanwhile, Bruno, Karen, and I will get inside the temple. Team Rocket's forces won't be as strong inside. Alright, you all know what to do. Let's do it!"

* * *

><p>Team Rocket's ships landed in front of the entrance to the temple, which was a cave entrance with stairs inside, leading down underground. The boss grabbed Ash and forced him out of the helicopter. The grunts and Pokemon Hunters started exiting the three large ships.<p>

"You two, come with me." the boss said, pointing to Oliver and Mya.

He then faced the hundreds of grunts and said, "Don't let anyone in. You are to stay out here and guard the entrance. I don't care what it takes, make sure that no one gets in at any cost.

"And Darien, you are to stay on your ship."

"Yes, father." Darien turned and walked back onto his ship. He had to stay to make sure that the kids didn't escape.

Ash was shoved to the entrance and down the stairs that went down through a dimly lit tunnel for quite a while. The tunnel lead to a giant shrine deep underground. Once inside, they saw that it was a large, round room with a high ceiling and pillars circling it. Ash glanced beside him to see Scyther and Electivire, the boss's Pokemon, making sure that Ash didn't try anything stupid.

"Well, Ash Ketchum, here we are." said the boss. "When we captured you eight months ago, it was so that we could bring you here. You have no choice but to cooperate with us. Put your hands on the tablet in front of you and use your Aura to activate this temple."

Ash looked at the large, blank tablet, which was in the middle of the room. "Never! I know what this temple does, thanks to the loudmouthed grunts you have. I heard them while I was being held captive. You'll never control the Legendary Pokemon! Not while I'm still living!"

"Electivire, use Thunder." The attack hit Ash and he clenched his teeth in pain. After a few moments, the attack stopped.

"Maybe you misunderstood me. I'm not asking you. I'm telling you. Activate the temple!"

Ash laughed and said, "It'll take more than your little Thunder attack to make me do this. I've suffered far worse electrocution from my own Pikachu in my travels!"

Little did Ash know that Adam and his friends were captured and inside Darien's ship.

The boss smirked and spoke into his transmitter. "Darien, bring in the others."

The boss faced Ash and said, "I'm raising the stakes...and you're going to get a surprise. A very shocking surprise."

* * *

><p>Hearing his father's orders, Darien left the room that he was in and walked to the room where the children were. As he opened the door, he was greeted with what he expected. They weren't happy to see him.<p>

"What do you want?" Jason asked.

Ignoring the glares and the question, Darien walked over to Pikachu and Pichu. He slid the levers down and both Pokemon were freed from their domes.

"Pi?"

"Pika..."

"Why did you do that?" Adam asked.

Darien faced them and said, "I only captured you three to get the boss off of my back. I needed to make him think that I was still on his side. Your two Pokemon need to hide in one of your backpacks so that nobody will spot them."

Pikachu and Pichu obeyed and got into Adam's backpack.

Darien helped the three kids up from the floor and lead them out of the ship, past the grunts, and into the tunnel. They started walking down the dark hallway.

"The boss has been suspicious of my behavior ever since our encounter on the Seafoam Islands where I let you go, even though I could have captured you."

He paused and added, "Since then...I've changed. I've changed my ways. I'm going to stop Team Rocket's plans, even if I have to give my own life."

"When we met on the Seafoam Islands, why didn't you capture us when you had the chance?" Adam asked.

"I didn't capture you because...when I looked at you and was about to shoot you with my arm cannon...you reminded me of someone, Adam. When I looked at you, all I could see was 'her'."

"'Her?' Who's she?"

"My daughter."

"You have a daughter?!"

"So that means...I have a cousin?" Adam said in disbelief. "What's her name?"

"Her name is Brittany. Brittany Berlitz. She turned eight not long ago."

"What does she look like?" Michelle asked.

"She looks a lot like myself, and Dawn too, since she and I are twins."

A small silence passed over them.

"Could you three do me a favor? If I'm killed, make sure that you go to my ship and find her. Tell her that you're with Dawn because I told her to find Dawn if I didn't come back." he said. "I just hope that...that my sister will look after Brittany for me. I don't want anything bad to happen to my daughter and Dawn is the closest family that Brittany has."

Adam was quiet for a moment and then said, "Well, if not my mom, then I know my grandma; Johanna, will do it if you're really a member of my family. My parents will do anything for family, that's the kind of people that they are." Adam replied.

"Thank you, Adam. And even though you still doubt me, I assure you, I AM your uncle."

They eventually made their way down and walked into the shrine.

Hearing the footsteps, Ash looked over. He saw Adam, Jason, and a girl who looked a lot like Misty. The Pokemon Hunter standing behind the kids reminded him of Dawn.

"As you see, we have your son and his friends, meaning that I hold all of the cards. Now activate the temple or something bad might happen to your son and his friends." the boss said.

"Don't worry about me, dad. Don't do it. When this temple is activated, Team Rocket will capture every single Legendary Pokemon and use them to conquer all of Kanto." said Adam.

The boss gave a small chuckle. "I think your father needs a little convincing. Electivire, use Thunder Punch. His face, his chest, and her back."

The three kids cried out as the attacks hit them, a few sparks still lingering where the attacks had hit. Jason coughed, trying to gain his breath back after being hit in the chest and Michelle had almost fallen to the ground from the force of the strike to her back.

Ash felt himself starting to break. He couldn't let this continue and let his son be hurt.

Adam, seeing the look in his father's eyes, shook his head. "No. No, dad. Don't do it." Adam said, fighting through his pain and sounding as stern as he could.

"Like father, like son. You're both so stubborn." the boss said, nodding to Electivire.

Electivire used Thunder on Michelle. She screamed in pain as her body was being hit full-force by the attack. "Don't...do AHH! Anything!" she cried through the pain.

It then moved to Jason. He screamed. "AHH! Don't!" he cried, only able to get one word out.

His attack lasted longer than Michelle's had. Then finally, it hit Adam. He screamed, feeling everything that his friends had just felt.

"Don't! AHH! Dad, don't! AHH! DAD!" Adam screamed.

Adam's electrocution lasted the longest. When the attack finished, the three of them were on the ground in pain. Sparks lingering, muted cries of pain, but it was shown in their eyes. They couldn't move.

Unknown to any of them, a white glow was coming from inside Adam's backpack. The kids were grabbed and pulled up into a kneeling position by Darien.

The boss looked at Ash, seeing the pain in his eyes and the internal struggle that he was facing. "Oh, I think you should know one more thing. Hunter Michael is waiting in his ship just outside of Pallet Town with his army of mind-controlled Pokemon, waiting for my orders to attack."

He knew that this would break Ash. He wouldn't want his hometown to suffer and his wife was at stake, too. "I'm sure that you wouldn't want anything to happen to your wife, Dawn, since we already have your son. As I said, I hold all of the cards."

Ash glanced at the tablet. He didn't want to do exactly what Team Rocket wanted him to do, but his family's life was at stake.

"You'd better not hurt her! Leave my mom out of this!" Adam cried, finding his voice.

"Well, that all depends on your father and what he chooses."

Ash looked at the boss. "How do you even know about Dawn?" he asked.

"I know her because she's my daughter and his sister." he said, pointing at Darien. "He's my son, too. They are twins. That's right, Ash. That makes you my son-in-law and Darien's brother-in-law. It also means that Adam is my grandson and is Darien's nephew. I have never revealed my true name to anybody but my wife, but since you'll never live to tell anyone, I'll make an exception.

"My name is Jacob. Jacob Berlitz. Let me tell you my story. It started many years ago. I was a young Pokemon Hunter, making a name for myself throughout the Pokemon black market in Sinnoh. But I knew that eventually, I would die of old age or if I was captured by the authorities. I would need a child, someone to carry on the Berlitz name in the world of Pokemon Hunters someday.

"That was when I met a young, beautiful, talented Pokemon coordinator named Johanna. I treated her well, cared for her, told her that I loved her...but little did she know that it was all just an act and that foolish woman fell for it! I never loved her, I was using her as a means to an end!

"Love is mankind's greatest weakness. Look at what it's done to you! Your wife and son's lives are at stake and your love makes you care too much about them to say no to my demands. Love makes humanity so exploitable. Me? I have no ties to anyone, not even my son! He knows this just as well as I do. In the world of Pokemon crime, it's every man for himself. It's what separates the weak from the strong and me from you, Ash.

"That idiot, Johanna, fell for my charade and ended up marrying me. We were very well off because of all of the money that I possessed from hunting Pokemon. I was paid thousands, sometimes millions for my captures. She eventually gave birth to twins and we named them Darien and Dawn.

"Finally having what I needed, a child, I no longer had any use for my wife or daughter. So a year after they were born, I snuck out of the house one night, taking my son and all of our money with me, leaving my wife and daughter alone and penniless.

"I raised Darien on my own, making sure that he'd grow up to become a ruthless Pokemon Hunter just like me and he has not disappointed me, not once in his life. After many years of teaching Darien the ways of hunting, Darien left me and my teachings behind and became an official Pokemon Hunter.

"But everything changed the day that Team Rocket's former leader, Giovanni, contacted me and hired me to assist him in the reconstruction of Team Rocket. He asked me to assist him in capturing enough Pokemon to build an unstoppable army. In return, he promised me that I would rule Kanto alongside him, and eventually, the whole world...but then, Giovanni found out about this place, the Temple of Legends.

"And when I found out what this temple could do, and that Giovanni wanted me to capture the Legendary Pokemon, I realized that all of that power could be mine and was ripe for the taking! Why share the spoils when I could have it all? So I turned against Giovanni and killed him, establishing myself as the new leader of Team Rocket. I made Team Rocket bigger and stronger than ever before!

"Any members of Team Rocket that did not swear total allegiance to me as their new leader were killed. Those who were seen as weak or insignificant like Jessie, James, and Meowth were also killed. I believe that you remember them, Ash?

"And I picked up right where Giovanni had left off, trying to find the Temple of Legends to capture the Legendary Pokemon. To accelerate my plans and capture more Pokemon for my army, I brought in four new Pokemon Hunters to serve directly under me: Oliver, Mya, Michael, and my son, Darien. As you can see, we've succeeded in our task."

Unknown to the boss, while he was talking, Darien knelt down next to the kids.

"Can you still move after everything you went through with Electivire?" he asked, whispering and looking to make sure that no one was looking at them.

"Yes, enough to get our Pokemon out, at least." they answered.

Darien untied them and stuffed the rope into one of their bags. "Keep your arms behind your backs. As soon as I shout 'GO!', throw your Pokeballs and start battling. Once the distraction is done, get Ash and get out. I have a surprise waiting for my father to make sure that he won't stop you from getting away."

At that moment, Jacob got a message over his radio transmitter. "Boss, we have trouble! The police have arrived here outside the temple! And the Elite Four are with them! We're battling them and trying to hold them off. We've got them outnumbered but their Pokemon are just too powerful!" the grunt cried, panicking.

The boss quickly pressed a button. "Michael, change of plans! Leave Pallet Town and come to the temple, quickly! The police and the Elite Four are battling our forces outside the temple and are trying to get in! Help the grunts keep the police and Elite Four from gaining entry!"

Panic was showing on Jacob's face. He knew that time was short. It was now or never.

"Scyther, you know what to do." he said. Scyther pressed its bladed arm against the front of Michelle's neck. Her eyes widened and she bit her lip.

"THAT'S IT, I'M OUT OF PATIENCE!" he roared. "No more games! Now activate the temple or else the girl gets it! One swipe of Scyther's arm and her head gets sliced off! And your son will be next!"

Michelle felt her heart beating rapidly. She didn't dare move, because one little twitch and she would be killed. Tears were falling silently down her face. She had never felt this scared in her life, not even when Oliver had captured her.

Adam and Jason wanted to throw their Pokeballs, but knew that it would only cause the boss to hurt Michelle...no, kill Michelle. There wouldn't be enough time to call out their Pokemon and stop his Scyther.

She had her hands in fists behind her back, her knuckles turning white. She closed her crying eyes and tried to imagine that she was back at home with her mom, not here, about to die. If Michelle was going to die...then her only regret was not knowing who her father was, since that was the question that she wanted answered the most in her life. That was her secret goal that she kept hidden from everyone.

Ash, seeing that he was about to lose everything that he valued, faced the tablet, tearing his eyes away from Michelle and Scyther. He had finally broken inside. He would not let anything happen to his family and friends. Reluctantly, Ash placed his hands on the tablet. He closed his eyes and his body glowed blue and then the tablet did, too.

The Temple of Legends had been activated.

**Author's Note: More information about Darien and his father have been revealed as Team Rocket prepares for the final phase of their plan. Now, with Team Rocket threatening his friends and family, Ash has activated the Temple of Legends!**

**But the Elite Four and the police have arrived at the temple and are battling the grunts, trying to get inside to rescue Ash and the others, but they may already be too late!**

**Will Team Rocket capture the Legendary Pokemon? Will they control the world? What was that glow coming from Adam's backpack? Is Michelle going to die? Is EVERYONE going to die?!**

**Find out next time in the next unbelievable, exciting, dramatic, heart-stopping, and emotional chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	46. Reunited at Last

I watched as a beam of light shot into the air and a portal began to form. The portal grew larger and larger with each passing second. Eventually, it stopped growing and blurry forms appeared in the portal. As the images cleared up, it was revealed that they were images of every Legendary Pokemon in existence! All of the Legendary Pokemon could be seen as they floated by in the portal.

I saw Jacob smile evilly, but excitement could be seen in his eyes. He was about to gain control of all the Legendary Pokemon. There they were in front of him, just waiting to be summoned. Mya and Oliver had their cannons aimed at the portal, waiting. Once the Pokemon appeared, they would be captured immediately, without any chance of escaping.

Jacob looked at my dad and said, "Being the Chosen One, the Legendary Pokemon will only listen to your voice. Now tell them to come to us and we'll handle the rest."

"Don't do it, Ash!" a voice shouted.

Looking back to the entrance of the room, I saw the Elite Four members; Lance, Bruno, and Karen! Yes! Help had arrived! I saw Lance's eyes scan the number of Team Rocket members in the room.

"Oliver, Mya, Darien, stop them!" Jacob cried.

Mya and Oliver rushed towards the Elite Four, but Darien remained where he was. Mya started battling Karen while Oliver took on Bruno. Lance was about to throw a Pokeball but stopped, seeing that Darien wasn't doing anything.

"What are you waiting for? Attack, Darien!" the boss yelled.

"I don't think so, father!" he replied, raising his cannon and shooting Scyther, who still had his blade against Michelle's neck. Scyther was turned to stone and Michelle was free.

"GO!" Darien yelled.

That was our cue. I went to move, but movement in my backpack made me stop. I opened my backpack and TWO Pikachus leaped out, their cheeks sparking with electricity. They were ready to fight. I couldn't believe my eyes! How did I get two of them? But I would have to find out later. Right now, it was time to fight!

"Attack him!" I cried, pointing at my grandfather.

Both of them launched a Thunderbolt towards Jacob, but his Electivire jumped in front of him and blocked both Thunderbolts!

"Grab Ash and get out! I'll deal with my father!" Darien yelled as he released his Hydreigon and faced his father. "I'm through listening to you. I'm leaving you and Team Rocket behind forever, father! You'll pay for your evil!"

"I had a hunch for a while that you were going to betray me, son. Just waiting until the stakes were high enough? Well, it doesn't matter now. I won't hesitate to kill a member of my own family!"

"Then we have something in common." Darien said, commanding Hydreigon to attack.

And now there were three battles happening around us. Attacks were flying through the air, explosions were going off, people yelling commands to their Pokemon, it was pure chaos in the temple!

Amidst the pandemonium, Jason, Michelle, and I managed to run over to my dad and he quickly grabbed the tablet, shouting over the sounds of battling, "If the tablet activated the portal, then if I destroy it, the portal should close!" He smashed it into the ground and it broke apart in many rock fragments. A few moments passed...but the portal didn't close!

Instead, in a split second, the portal turned red in color and red beams of energy started to shoot out from the portal. The beams shot in all directions, blasting the temple's walls and ceiling, causing the temple to start crumbling. Rocks started falling from the ceiling, causing the ground to shake from the impact. The temple could collapse at any moment!

The battling stopped and everyone who was battling returned their Pokemon and ducked for cover. Then there was a loud crack followed by many thuds. Moments later, the Elite Four, the Pokemon Hunters, and Jacob were pinned under rocks.

"We need to get out!" Lance yelled over the noise. "This whole place could collapse!"

My dad looked at Lance. "Lance, get the kids and get out. I'm closing the portal."

What?! No! He couldn't! "Dad, no! I won't lose you again!" I yelled.

My dad looked at me with a look that mirrored my mom's look when she first found out that dad was missing. Sadness and pain were in his eyes.

"Adam, I love you. If I don't make it, tell your mom that I love her, too."

"NO! DAD!" I yelled as I struggled to stay standing from all of the tremors.

Jason and Michelle ran for the staircase, stumbling and avoiding rocks and beams of energy that headed their way. I didn't budge. I felt Lance's hand grip my arm and pull me backwards. I tried to stop him from pulling me, but I couldn't. Forced to run from the room, dodging the rocks and energy beams, I stared at my dad. I began to cry as I stared at his receding image. After everything that I had done to find him, was he going to die in front of me? Were all my efforts for nothing?

Dad had to have a plan. He looked away from me and at the portal. Jason and Michelle watched, unmoving. Lance kept still. Everyone was holding their breath.

_Come on, dad. You can do this._

I watched as the portal started to shrink, but my dad's body started to glow red as the portal's Aura energy flowed into his body. He clenched his teeth and groaned in pain as he continued.

_You can do it, dad. There's no challenge that you've faced that you couldn't overcome!_

I could sense the pain that my dad was feeling. This was raw Aura that he was dealing with. After I had learned about my own Aura ability, I learned that raw Aura was very dangerous. Absorb too much of it, and it would kill you.

_Dad, please..._

The ground started to shake even more as the portal was nearly gone, but it was trying to fight against my dad's Aura. With one last, loud cry from my dad, the portal disappeared and everything became calm and still. His body still glowed red, but then it changed blue. As the glow faded away, a strange mark appeared on his right hand.

"As legend says, the Chosen One can summon all of the Legendary Pokemon at the Temple of Legends. Ash is the Chosen One and since he absorbed the portal's Aura, he now has that ability inside his body. He doesn't need the temple, he can summon them at will." Lance said, explaining what had happened.

I stood up, breaking away from Lance's grip on my arm and ran over to my dad.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

He looked up at me and nodded. "I'm fine, and sorry for how I look. It's less-than-impressive. But a long time being held captive will do that to you." It was clear that he still had a sense of humor.

Suddenly, everything hit me all at once. I had finally found my dad, alive and safe! After eight months of searching, my goal had finally been accomplished! We were reunited at last.

"Dad..." I mumbled. A wave of emotion came over me and I started to cry. In all of the chaos, I had forgotten how much I had missed him.

My mind suddenly flashed back to the day that I had battled Paul. He had beaten me badly and I had broken down and cried. But after Michelle and Jason had cheered me up, I had said, _"From now on, I swear you'll never see me cry again until the day we find my dad! Because on that day, I'll be crying tears of joy!" _True to my word, here I was now, reunited with my dad and crying tears of joy. I could finally let it all out.

He knelt down and I hugged him, crying into his shoulder. As I hugged my dad, I felt his body shaking with emotion. My dad was finally back again. All of the people who had doubted that he was alive and said that he was dead...they were wrong! Now all that was left to do was to reunite him and mom.

"Pika!"

My dad looked up and his eyes widened as Pikachu jumped into his arms. "Pikachu! You're okay!" he cried as Pikachu nuzzled into his neck.

The day that he had been captured was the day that I found Pikachu in the forest, barely alive. Dad must have thought that Pikachu was dead for all this time. Pikachu had been left for dead by Team Rocket so the only thing that he could've done was hope that Pikachu would survive as he was captured and taken away.

I wiped my eyes and stood up. Looking around, I spotted the other Pikachu next to me. How is there another Pikachu?

"Wait...were you my Pichu?" I asked the Pokemon.

"Pika. Pikachu!" he answered.

"But...how did you evolve in my backpack?" I asked, realizing that was the only time that Pichu could have evolved. He was a Pichu when I put him in my backpack on Darien's ship and he never came out until now.

"Pichu evolves when it likes its trainer enough, just like how Togepi and Happiny evolve. It must have happened when you were being electrocuted by Electivire. Pichu felt the shocks and knew that you were in trouble and needed his help. He knew that as a Pichu, he wouldn't be much help, so he had to evolve to save you. To protect his trainer and friend." my dad explained.

"But I still don't understand how you kids got here or how you were able to find me."

"It's a long story, dad. I'll tell you later."

Footsteps rushed into the room and it was Officer Jenny and some cops. "It was tough out there, but the grunts outside have surrendered or fled. We tried to keep them all in our sights, but some managed to escape." she said.

"Little help here," Lance called.

The cops ran over to the rocks and helped uncover the people trapped under the rockers. After removing the rocks from the Hunters, the Elite Four, and Jacob, it was discovered that no one was seriously hurt.

Before any of the Hunters could try to escape, they were stripped of their arm cannons and Pokemon. Officer Jenny handcuffed them. Officer Jenny went to handcuff Darien when Lance placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Officer Jenny, he defied Team Rocket and tried to stop them by battling the boss." Lance said.

"He helped us, too." Jason said.

"He turned Scyther to stone and saved my life. I could have been killed." Michelle said.

"He was also able to untie our hands and free us so that we could get my dad." I said.

Darien looked at my dad and said, "I know that this won't mean much to you, but I will honestly say that I'm sorry for everything that I've done. Do whatever you want to me, I deserve a lot of punishment for my crimes, but promise me that you'll look after my daughter."

My dad shook his head. "No, I won't do that...because you'll look after her yourself. I grew up without my father and Adam has gone through a tough time without me. I won't let another member of my family go through their life without their parents." He could see that Darien was being sincere.

"Let Darien go. But since I'm still a little uncertain about if he can be trusted, keep an eye on him." my dad said, looking at Officer Jenny and the Elite Four.

Darien remained quiet. He was shocked. After everything that he had done to my dad, my dad had shown mercy and forgiven him!

"Thank you...I don't know what to say." Darien said softly, feeling very humbled.

That's one thing that I knew about my dad. He valued family a lot and believed that there's some form of good in almost everyone. I also knew that besides his battling skills and Aura, one of the main reasons that he was named Pokemon Master was because of his wisdom, his heart, and his solid judgment. You aren't named Pokemon Master just because of your battling skills, but most people think that's the only way that you could or would be Pokemon Master.

Officer Jenny lead us up the stairs and out of the temple. I stayed at my dad's side. I was afraid that if I left him, he would disappear again. Police cars were everywhere with grunts in them or in prison trucks. Everyone and their Pokemon looked exhausted from the battle that had gone on outside of the temple. The ground was covered with soaked mud, craters, and some dark, burnt patches, all from the various attacks and battles that had gone on. Team Rocket had put up a heck of a fight!

I noticed that a group of police officers were huddled together. Suddenly, a figure ran out from them and towards Darien. Darien bent down and picked up the figure, hugging it. I realized that it was a girl. This must be Brittany, his daughter that he mentioned.

Brittany was eight from what Darien had told us. She had long, sapphire blue hair and brown eyes. She was wearing a black tank top, a lavender skirt, and lavender knee-high boots. She looked like a young version of my mom with the sapphire blue hair, even though Darien had the same hair color, being my mom's twin and all. Blue hair seemed to be a common trait in the Berlitz family.

"You're okay!" she cried as she happily hugged her dad.

Darien put her on the ground. He then knelt down in front of her, saying, "Brittany, I want you to meet some family. They're related to my sister, Dawn." he said.

Brittany nodded her head.

"That's your uncle, Ash, and your cousin, Adam." he said, pointing.

She looked at her dad and he nodded his head, showing that it was okay. "Hi..." she said softly and hid behind Darien's legs. I could see that it would take a while for her to be comfortable around us.

"Ash, it might be a good idea if you go to the hospital. You look weak and you've been through a lot in the past months. You've been in captivity for so long with very little food and you've lost some weight. You also just absorbed a lot of Aura. You need to go to the hospital and rest and get your strength back."

My dad nodded his head, "That sounds like a good idea."

Officer Jenny and the Elite Four started talking to one another.

"Oh yeah..." I removed my Pokedex and pointed it at my newly-evolved Pikachu.

"Pikachu, the Mouse Pokemon and the evolved form of Pichu. It can generate Electric attacks from the electric pouches located in both of its cheeks."

I rubbed Pikachu's head. Pikachu was perched on my shoulder and nuzzled into my cheek.

"Ash, I'm sorry. I know that you want Darien and his daughter to remain free, but it can't happen. Not yet." Lance said after talking with the other Elite Four members and the cops.

"They'll be in our custody for a little while, just to be safe." Officer Jenny added.

"Okay, I understand your reasons." my dad said.

"I do, too. That's fine." Darien said.

Officer Jenny nodded and she and the Elite Four turned.

"Where's your leader?" Lance asked.

Looking at the Pokemon Hunters...Jacob was gone!

A Pokemon cried out in the sky. Looking up into the sky, we saw a Dragonite flying with Jacob and Pokemon Hunter Michael on its back.

"You haven't seen the last of me or Team Rocket!" Jacob yelled. "We will be back, stronger than ever!"

"Oh, and kids, if you see your friend Nikki, tell her that I'll be back for her!" Michael cried. "I wasn't finished with her when she escaped!"

The Pokemon flew into Michael's ship and then the ship flew off. Team Rocket's leader had escaped.

The happy reunion with my dad and victory over Team Rocket had been achieved, but the threat wasn't gone yet. Jacob, my grandfather, was still free along with Michael, the most dangerous of the four Pokemon Hunters.

This was far from over.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

As the ship flew away, Jacob looked at Michael and asked, "Why didn't you come to help us when I first contacted you?!"

"I was on the way, but I received a message from the base, saying that they had found a bomb in the depths of the base, a powerful one at that. The transmission then cut out and I raced back to see if there were any survivors or if anything could be salvaged. There was nothing left and nobody was alive. The mountain that the base was inside of had completely collapsed." he replied.

Jacob cursed and said, "We've lost most of our men, our main base is destroyed and you are the only Pokemon Hunter left. Oliver and Mya are in custody and Darien has betrayed us."

"Darien? Well, that figures. At least we still have my army of mind-controlled Pokemon. But there aren't nearly enough of them to take over even a single city!"

"We're heading to our other base, the one in Johto. From there, we will build Team Rocket back up and find some other way to conquer the world with the Temple of Legends now gone."

"Oh, I think I know how we can conquer the world..." Michael said as he looked at his arm cannon.

**Author's Note: The battle is over. Team Rocket has been defeated. The temple has been shut down. Ash is alive and safe and has gained a new power. Adam has been reunited with his dad and they've met Darien and Brittany, two new members of their family.**

**But Jacob and Hunter Michael are still out there somewhere, hatching another plan to conquer the world. This isn't the last that Adam has seen of Team Rocket.**

**With Ash now back, where will the story go from here? Find out in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**

**We hope you've enjoyed this four-part showdown with Team Rocket.**


	47. Third Time's the Charm

**Ash's POV**

I stood, looking around in darkness.

_Where am I?_ I thought.

A light appeared and it slowly began to change its form. The form took the shape of Arceus. Then Dialga appeared, followed by Palkia. Before I knew it, all of the Legendary Pokemon had appeared before me!

"Chosen One, you have acquired a rare and powerful ability. That mark on your hand signifies that you are the Master of Legends, controller of all Legendary Pokemon. Humans may have already recognized you as a Pokemon Master, but now, you are a true master of ALL Pokemon, including us. If you are ever in need of our power, you may summon us and we will fight for you. We can sense that you will not use our power for evil, for your heart is pure and strong. We are proud to call you our master." Arceus said, its voice echoing.

All of the Legendary Pokemon bowed respectfully before me and slowly disappeared.

* * *

><p>I blinked and woke up in a hospital room. "It was all just a dream." I muttered.<p>

I was staying at the Viridian City hospital until I got my strength back. I leaned back against the pillow and looked at the ceiling, but then looked at the marking on my right hand.

I never imagined that I would ever gain the ability to summon the Legendary Pokemon. When I was on Shamouti Island, I could barely believe that I was the Chosen One...and now I'm the Master of Legends. I've come a long way and it's an honor that all of the Legendary Pokemon that I've met on my journey trust me enough for this. This shows how far I've come and how strong I've become.

I looked up from my hand and looked at the window. I saw that it was morning and I gently shook Pikachu awake. A knock was made on the door and it opened. A young nurse with honey blonde hair tied in a bun and blue eyes walked in with a tray of food. Breakfast time!

"Here's your breakfast. How do you feel?" she asked, placing the tray on the table.

"Better than I've felt in a while." I replied.

She slid the table over to me. "That's good. If you need anything, just call for us." she said and left.

I looked at the food and even though it was hospital food, which usually isn't that good, it was still food. And it was a lot more than I had eaten while in captivity. I started eating and before I knew it, my food was gone. I ate a second plate because I was still really hungry and needed to regain some weight that I had lost.

When that was finished, I pushed the table away as far as I could. Another knock was made at the door and it opened to reveal Lance and the Elite Four.

"How are you feeling?" Lance asked as he closed the door.

"A lot better." I said.

"That's good. We thought that we should explain what's happened while you were missing."

"Okay, that's fine. I'm curious to know how you found me." I said.

"Well, then we'll start there." Bruno said.

"It all started when your son and his friends came to the gym in Fuchsia City. I secretly watched his battle and once your son had finished, I revealed myself. I spoke of a tournament, which Lance will tell you more about afterwards. Adam told me that he had encountered Team Rocket and said that you were alive because he believed that your disappearance and Team Rocket's supposed return couldn't be a coincidence. He told me that they had run into Team Rocket and he mentioned that they spoke of the Temple of Legends." Koga explained. "I could tell that he was telling the truth because of his tone of voice and eye contact."

"So Koga requested a meeting and he told us what your son had told him. We started researching about the Temple of Legends. Then we found it, but at the same time as Team Rocket." Bruno finished.

"Okay...so about this tournament?" I questioned.

"Right, the tournament." Lance said.

"Well, we planned to have a tournament to determine a new Pokemon Master. We only did this due to the fact that we had no leads as to how you had vanished. A poll that was put up to the public was voted on and declared you to be dead. We had no choice but to have a backup plan in case the worst had happened to you. But we're going to call the tournament off, since you're back now." Lance explained.

"Don't let anyone else know that I'm back or else they'll broadcast it on television and the news will have a field day. I want to see my family first and I want them to know first...in person." I said.

"We understand. Don't worry, Ash. We won't say anything until you return home and then the whole world will know of your return."

"Thank you. Any information from the Pokemon Hunters that the police captured?"

"We learned their names and how many there are and where their base is, but that's it. We've captured Hunters Oliver, Mya, and Darien, but Michael and the Team Rocket boss are still out there somewhere."

"But they have nowhere to run." said Karen. "We investigated the place where their base is supposed to be, but we only found the remains of Team Rocket's base."

"The remains of the base...but that makes no sense! Why would Team Rocket blow up their own headquarters with their own members inside?" Ash asked.

"We have one theory. There was a traitor in Team Rocket who sabotaged them. We have no leads or ideas about who it could be or if they're even alive. They may have died when they set off the bomb."

"Well, it doesn't matter now. Their base is gone and it's only a matter of time before we find them." said Lance. "Well, that's everything that's happened. Get better soon, Ash."

The five of them walked out and as the door was closing, Adam and the girl who looked like Misty entered.

**Adam's POV**

Michelle and I were walking to my dad's room and as we arrived at the door, it opened to reveal the Elite Four leaving. We slipped in before the door closed and my dad looked at us.

"Hey, dad." I greeted.

"Hey, Adam. Who are you?" he asked Michelle.

"I'm Michelle Waterflower. I'm Misty's daughter." she replied.

"Ah, yes. I saw the resemblance when I first saw you, but I didn't know for sure."

"Well, you were right. I've been traveling with Adam and Jason. He's told me a lot about you and about the stories that he's heard about your journey. It's an honor to finally meet you in person, Master Ketchum."

"So what kind of trainer are you? What have you been doing on your journey with the boys?"

"I've been competing in contests. I'm a coordinator and Dawn was my inspiration to become a coordinator."

My dad smiled. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Michelle. How many ribbons do you have?"

"I have four and the contest here in Viridian City is my last chance to get my fifth ribbon so that I can enter the Grand Festival. I've lost the last two contests I've entered, though...I've missed out on getting my final ribbon twice."

"Well, Dawn went through the same thing that you went through. She was discouraged and she wanted to quit. But don't give up. Trust me, I know what it feels like to feel like you'll never get what you want or feel like you'll never beat someone in a battle."

I guessed that he was talking about his journey in Sinnoh when he had lost badly to Paul at Lake Acuity.

"So how did you two meet? Did she start traveling with you after Pikachu destroyed her bike?" he asked.

Michelle and I laughed and I shook my head. "Ironically, it was actually Misty's suggestion that we all travel together." I said.

"She said it's better to travel with friends than alone. She was right." Michelle added.

"That it is. Are you scared of Bug Pokemon, like your mom?"

"No, I'm not. I actually find Caterpie cute and my mom thinks I'm crazy for thinking that!" Michelle said, laughing slightly.

"So Adam, how has it been traveling with her? Do you two fight a lot like Misty and I did?"

"No, it's been really easy traveling with her. We haven't fought at all and we're always comforting the other when we're hurt or upset."

A look of confusion came across my dad's face, so I explained.

"I cheered Michelle up after she lost in the Vermillion City and Saffron City contests. She helped me feel better after I first heard that people had said that you were dead and the time when Paul beat me in a battle and said you were dead." I said.

"Honestly, she's like a sister to Jason and I. When we left Pallet Town, we never imagined that anyone else would be joining us on our journey, but now, I can't imagine traveling without her."

My dad smiled at how close we were.

"Adam has also saved my life from Team Rocket, one of the Pokemon Hunters." Michelle said.

"Saved your life?" he asked.

"Yes, we ran into Hunter Oliver and we ran, but I tripped and fell and he caught me. I was almost gone forever, but thanks to Adam's plan, they saved me from being taken prisoner." she explained.

"She saved my life too, from Hunter Mya. She helped get me warmed up after I was freezing and almost dead." I said.

"Wait, did you say freezing?" he asked.

"Yes, she completely froze my body and I almost died from the cold. Michelle held me and warmed me up."

"The Pokemon Hunters caught you more than once?"

"Yes..."

"I'm sorry,"

"It's fine. They never caught all three of us at once. We've been there for each other and helped each other escape. We could trust each other with our lives."

"Well, I'm glad that you two have such a strong relationship. It's better than the relationship that I had with Misty, but we were still friends no matter what. I'm glad that you and Jason have met someone like Michelle." said dad.

"I'm glad that I got to meet them, too." Michelle said.

"Same here. I can't imagine myself going on my journey and not knowing you, Michelle."

"Likewise, Adam. You and Jason are the best thing that's ever happened to me."

We stared at each other with smiles on our faces as we thought about all the times that we shared together. Little did I know that my dad was seeing something else developing between Michelle and I.

A knock was made on the door and it opened. Jason walked in with a bag in his hands.

"I got you some stuff." he said, handing the bag to my dad.

"Thanks, Jason." my dad, said looking into the bag.

My dad removed a razor and a can of shaving cream along with scissors. He had grown long hair and a thick beard in the time he was captured. This would make him look like his old self again.

"Oh yeah, I think you would like your stuff back." Jason said, removing his backpack from his shoulders.

He removed my dad's stuff that he had taken from Team Rocket's base and gave it to him.

"My Pokeballs, my Pokedex, everything is here. Thanks, Jason."

A knock and the door opened to reveal...Ritchie!

"Well, good to see that the Pokemon Master lives." Ritchie said, closing the door.

"Ritchie, it's good to see you again." my dad said happily. Ritchie and my dad go way back.

"Same here, Ash. Jason told me you were here at the hospital so I thought I would stop by."

Sparky jumped down from Ritchie's shoulder and both my dad's Pikachu and mine ran over to him.

"So how's the gym?"

"It's been doing well. I haven't really had many challengers this month. It's been slow for a while."

"Well, we'll be battling you soon, Ritchie." I said.

"Yeah, real soon." Jason said.

"Well, I look forward to it." Ritchie said.

"Good luck, you'll need it. I've seen how tough Ritchie can be. He even beat me once." said dad.

Then, Michelle remembered something. "When is the contest being held?" she asked. "We've been so busy with Team Rocket that I forgot to check."

"It's, um...this afternoon." Jason answered in a nervous voice.

"What?!" she cried. "The contest is today?"

"Good luck, Michelle. I'll be watching on the TV here in my room." my dad said.

Michelle gave a nod before running out of the room with a panicked look on her face.

* * *

><p><strong>Michelle's POV<strong>

I couldn't believe that the contest was this afternoon! That only gave me a few hours to prepare for the biggest contest of my life! At least I knew what Pokemon I was going to use. I was going to use Togetic for the appeals and Jolteon for the battles. Togetic was my best performer and Jolteon was my most experienced Pokemon. This was my final chance to win!

So there I was, in my final contest, standing backstage in my contest outfit and waiting. None of my friends were there, since they all had five ribbons already. I went and sat down on one of the benches and waited for the contest to begin or for Adam and Jason to come backstage and talk to me. I fiddled with the beads that rested against my arms.

"You'll do great, Michelle. You're going to win." Adam said, startling me. I looked up and saw that Adam and Jason were there.

"Yeah, you're going to win." Jason added.

"You're wearing some of the perfume that Erika gave you." Adam noted.

I nodded my head. "Yep, I put on a little for good luck." I replied.

"You're gonna do great. You're going to the Grand Festival." Jason said.

"Exactly. Good luck, you've got this." Adam said, giving me an encouraging hug.

The boys left me and I turned my attention to the screen, watching as Jillian took the stage.

"Good afternoon, everybody! It's time for our final contest of the year. Today, the contestants will be competing for the Viridian City Ribbon. This is their final chance to get into the Grand Festival for this is the last contest before the Grand Festival begins! I'm your host, Jillian! Now let's meet our wonderful judges!" Jillian cried.

I watched as the judges said their comments, but I couldn't bother to listen. My stomach was feeling like a pit of Butterfrees at the moment. This was my last chance, no more room for error, and I had had very little preparation. I was so nervous, it felt like I'd jumped back in time to my first contest.

"You can do this." I said to myself. I took a deep breath and leaned back against the wall, watching as the other coordinators did their appeals. Before I knew it, my turn was next. I stood backstage behind the curtains, waiting for my name to be announced. I took a breath and looked at Togetic's Pokeball.

"We can do this, Togetic." I said softly.

"Next up, we have Michelle!" Jillian cried.

The curtains parted. I took a breath and ran out onto the stage jumping over the stairs. I spun and tossed my Pokeball, my skirt twirling.

"Togetic, spotlight!" I cried. Togetic appeared, surrounded by hearts.

"Magical Leaf!" I cried. Sparkles fell from the hearts as the Magical Leaf burst them.

"Not wasting any time, they start the performance right off!" Jillian cried.

"Now Togetic, use Sweet Kiss and twirl!" I cried. Once again, the ribbon illusion was created.

"Now use Wish!" With Sweet Kiss still in affect, the Wish sparkles made a pretty sight. I curtsied and Togetic flew and landed on my head with her head bowed.

After a few more performances, the appeals round was over. I waited backstage with my heart pounding.

"Now to announce the eight coordinators that will be moving on to round two!" Jillian cried. I watched as one by one, pictures were shown, but none being mine until the second last coordinator.

"I made it..." I said softly.

I looked to see who I would be facing off against. I looked around and caught the eyes of my opponent and he nodded his head at me.

* * *

><p>With only a minute left, I was leading in points.<p>

"Jolteon use, Thunder!" I cried.

The buzzer went off.

"The winner and the coordinator who will be moving on to the finals is...Michelle!" Jillian cried.

Yes! I was in the finals. Just one more battle and I would win my final ribbon.

"To my left is Michelle, and to my right is Jace! Five minutes on the clock, and begin!"

"Jolteon, spotlight!" I cried.

"Flareon, show them!" Jace cried.

A battle of Eevee evolutions.

"We have a battle of the Eevee evolutions!" Jillian cried.

"Jolteon, use Thunder!" I cried.

"Flamethrower!"

Both moves battled for dominance.

"Spin!" I cried.

Jolteon lowered herself to the ground and started to spin, keeping Thunder in affect. The two moves merged together, creating a vortex of fire and electricity. Glancing up at the points, I saw that Jace's points lowered by a good amount. Glancing at Jace, I saw that he was shocked.

Jolteon spun out of the spin and waited.

"Fire Spin!"

"Quick Attack!"

Jolteon barely avoided the Fire Spin.

"Use Sand Attack!" yelled Jace. Jolteon was stopped as sand hit her in her eyes. She was pawing at her eyes, trying to clear them. "Now use Bite!" Jolteon cried out as Flareon's teeth bit her leg.

"Discharge!" I cried. Jolteon launched the attack and Flareon released Jolteon. Sparks were lingering on Flareon's body, showing that it had been paralyzed.

"Time's up!"

What? It was over already?

"The winner is...Michelle!"

I won? I WON! Jolteon ran over to me and I thanked her as I held her. I walked across the field and held my hand out.

"Great battle, Jace. Your Flareon is great."

"Thanks, your Jolteon is, too."

I shook his hand and walked to where the judges and Jillian were waiting. I let Togetic out of her Pokeball as I walked. This was her victory just as much as it was Jolteon's.

"Here is the Viridian Ribbon. We understand that this is your final ribbon, correct?" Mr. Contesta asked.

"Yes, it is."

"Well, we'll see you in the Grand Festival."

I took the ribbon and looked at it. I only had hours to prepare and I was still able to get my final ribbon. I did it! All of my past contest losses were forgotten and didn't matter now.

I lifted the ribbon as the crowd cheered and Jolteon jumped for joy and Togetic happily flew around above my head. It was great to have my Pokemon share the experience with me.

I walked backstage and changed after I returned my Pokemon. I pulled my bag onto my shoulder and walked out from backstage. I made my way outside of the contest hall and I spotted Adam and Jason out front.

As soon as I saw them, all my feelings of doubt, fear, and nervousness were gone. It finally hit me, I finally realized what had happened. All of my joy that had been contained suddenly exploded and I ran over to them.

"I did it! I made it!" I cried happily as I jumped, nearly knocking them over as I hugged them. I couldn't wipe the smile from my face, it was the happiest that I had felt in my entire life! They both hugged me back.

"You did great, Michelle." Jason said.

"Great job, Michelle." Adam said.

We stood there for a minute in each others' arms as the boys shared my joy and we all laughed happily.

"You guys were right! I did win! Thank you!" I said.

"You're welcome. But it was all you, Michelle." said Jason.

"Yeah, you and your Pokemon made this happen. You should be very proud of yourself." Adam added.

"I am very proud. Proud of my Pokemon, and proud that I have two great friends like you guys." I said.

"I don't know where the three of us would be if we didn't have each other." Adam said to us.

We walked back to the hospital to visit Ash again. We walked into the room.

"Congrats on your final ribbon, Michelle. You're really talented. I see that you learned the spin technique from Dawn."

"Thank you." I said. It was cool to be praised by someone that I had just met. Someone who also happened to be the husband of my idol and the father of my friend and brotherly figure.

"Now all that's left is for you two to battle Ritchie and get your badges to enter the Pokemon League." I said to Adam and Jason.

"After a big win like that today, we just have to win our battles, too!" Jason said confidently.

**Author's Note: After failing to win in the last two contests, Michelle has finally won her fifth ribbon in the biggest contest of her life!**

**And with Ash quickly recovering his strength and the boys pumped for their gym battles with Ritchie, things are really looking up for our heroes!**

**Be sure to keep reading and find out how their final gym battles go in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	48. Viridian City Victory

**Author's Note: Happy New Year, readers! We hope you enjoy our first chapter of 2014!**

**A big thank you to everybody who read, reviewed, favorited, and followed our story throughout 2013 and we hope that you continue to support us and read our stories throughout this year!**

I was sitting with Jason and Michelle in my dad's hospital room. He was slowly getting his strength and weight back. I had taken time to pick him up some new clothes so he could get rid of his worn-out clothes that he had worn while being captured.

The bathroom door opened and he walked out. Now he actually looked like my dad again. His hair was back to its normal length and the beard was gone, since he had shaved and cut his hair. He was wearing a plain black tee with jeans.

"You look like yourself again, dad." I said.

"Yeah, you do. Back to your old self." Jason added.

Michelle just smiled. I walked over to my dad and removed Pikachu's old Pokeball that my mom had given me on the day I left Pallet Town.

"I think you'll need this again." I said, placing it in his hand.

I then removed the hat that I was wearing and held it out to my dad. After all, this hat meant a lot to him. This was the hat that he was wearing when he was traveling through Kanto and Johto and was wearing it when he was captured. He deserved his hat back. But after a minute, my dad still hadn't taken it and I looked at him, confused.

"You keep it, Adam." he said.

"This hat means a lot to you though, dad. You deserve it." I said.

"Giving something that you cherish to someone you love is the best kind of gift to give."

I looked at my dad, shocked. "Really?" I asked.

He nodded his head. He leaned up and took the hat and placed it on my head. "It's your hat now." he said, smiling at me.

When I found his hat the day that he was taken, I was scared. Scared that the hat would be all that I would have left of him to remember him by. I made a promise to myself that if I found him, which I knew I would eventually, he would have his hat back because that hat was everything to him. It was his first hat that he had ever worn while traveling. He went through everything to make sure he got his hat back if it was missing, even battling an angry Primeape! Now he was giving me his hat?

My dad must've noticed the look on my face because he said, "That hat reminds me of a lot of adventures, but I don't feel bad by giving it up because there's something that I cherish even more than my mementos."

"What's that?"

"You, Adam."

Hearing my dad's kind and loving words, I hugged him and said, "Thank you, dad."

I reached up and adjusted the hat and smiled. "We're battling Ritchie today." I said.

"Yeah, we're gonna get our final gym badges today." Jason said.

"Good luck to both of you. You'll do great."

As we left the room, I realized something. "We need to stop at the Pokemon Center before we go to the gym." I said.

"Okay...?" Jason said, confused.

I knew that neither of them knew why we had to go to the Pokemon Center.

We walked into the Pokemon Center and I walked over to the video phone and dialed Gary. Since Pikachu was back with my dad, I only had five Pokemon now. I had some Pokemon back at the lab with Gary to make my team six Pokemon strong again.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Gary. Can you send me Machoke?" I asked.

"He's on his way." Gary said.

"Thanks,"

The Pokeball appeared and I grabbed it and hooked it to my belt and joined Jason and Michelle.

"Now we can go." I said.

We walked out of the Pokemon Center and into the streets of Viridian City. Just like the first time we passed through, there were kids playing with Pokemon and each other and others talking to one another.

"You know, we tried to challenge Ritchie once before." I said.

"Really?" Michelle asked.

"Yeah, it wasn't too long after we had started our journey." Jason added.

"Well then, I bet my tenth birthday hadn't passed yet, either." Michelle said, laughing. "What happened?"

"Well, he turned us down."

"A shame, but understandable. No offense, but your Pokemon wouldn't have stood a chance against the final gym leader and his Pokemon. They're highly skilled." Michelle said.

"Yeah, that's why he turned us down. But he knew we would challenge him one day." said Jason.

"And that day is today." I added.

We arrived at the gym and stood in front of it. This was finally it. It was finally time to challenge Ritchie. We walked up the steps and pushed the doors open. The doors creaked and the lights were dimmed.

"Nice to see you again. We can have that battle now." Ritchie said, stepping out from behind a pillar. "Which one of you will be challenging me first?"

Jason and I shared a look. He nodded his head and headed towards the bleachers with Michelle.

"I will." I said.

"Then let's get started."

I followed him to the battlefield. A ref ran to the middle and waited.

"The battle between the gym leader, Ritchie, and the challenger, Adam Ketchum, will now begin. This will be a three on three battle and will end when one side's Pokemon are unable to battle. Begin!"

"Dugtrio, go!" Ritchie cried, throwing a Pokeball.

"Wartortle, let's show 'em!" I cried, throwing my Pokeball.

"Go ahead, Adam. Show me what you've got!" Ritchie said.

"Wartortle, use Water Gun!"

"Dig!"

Dugtrio avoided the attack by burrowing underground.

"Be careful, Wartortle. Dugtrio could be anywhere." I said. Wartortle was looking all around the field, waiting for Dugtrio to appear.

"Now!" Dugtrio appeared behind Wartortle.

"Hide!" I cried. Wartortle retreated into its shell. "Now use Rapid Spin!"

Dugtrio's Dig hit Wartortle and sent Wartortle into the air, then the Rapid Spin started.

"Dodge it, Dugtrio!" Ritchie cried. But Dugtrio couldn't dodge the attack and got hit.

"Use Water Gun!"

"Dugtrio, dodge."

Dugtrio hid in one of the holes made from Dig.

"Use Water Gun into the hole!" I cried.

"Sand Tomb, quick!"

"Wartortle!" I cried, realizing what was about to happen. But it was too late. Wartortle was hit by the sand.

When the attack stopped, Wartortle was trapped in the sand, unable to get out. Only his head was showing.

"Stop, Wartortle. Remain calm, it's okay." I called, trying to calm him down.

"Use Slash!"

"Hydro Pump!"

Wartortle may not have been able to move, but he could still attack. Slash hit the water, trying to win the fight for dominance, but Hydro Pump won out.

How could I get Wartortle out of the sand? Would mud be easier...no, mud makes you get stuck even more so than sand. Maybe if I wet the sand just a little...it was worth a shot.

"Wartortle, use Water Gun on the sand." I said. The wet sand started to slide down his body. "Now move!" Wartortle broke out of the sand and was free!

"Dig!"

"Get ready to use Rapid Spin." I said. I hoped that this would work.

"Trio! Trio! Trio!" Dugtrio cried, appearing in front of Wartortle.

"Now!" I cried. Wartortle hid in his shell and was knocked into the air from the attack.

"Water Gun!" Wartortle stopped spinning and popped out of his shell and shot the Water Gun down towards Dugtrio. When the attack finished, I saw that Dugtrio had taken a good amount of damage.

"Now use Skull Bash."

"Wait." Ritchie said.

Wartortle ran headfirst towards Dugtrio.

"Earthquake!" The attack started and stopped Wartortle in his tracks. By now, both Pokemon were almost at their limits.

"Wartortle, let's end this. Use Hydro Spin!" I cried. Hydro Spin was a combination of Rapid Spin and Hydro Pump. It was almost like the move I had used earlier. Wartortle withdrew into his shell and began spinning as powerful streams of water were blasted out of the sides of his shell.

The water hit Dugtrio, causing it to become slightly dazed and then the water hit again, since Wartortle was spinning around. Dugtrio was pounded with water again and again before Wartortle slammed its shell right into Dugtrio and one last quick Water Gun to make sure Dugtrio was defeated! Wartortle landed in front of me and waited. Dugtrio was still standing, but with a cry, it fell to the ground.

"Dugtrio is unable to battle! The winner is Wartortle!" the ref cried.

"Impressive, Adam. You and Wartortle have a strong bond. Time to see how you do against my next Pokemon. Sandslash, go!" Ritchie said as he called out his next Pokemon.

"Wartortle, Water Gun!" I cried.

"Dig!"

I had to stop falling for this. Two of his Pokemon knew Dig. If I wanted to hit his Pokemon with Water Gun, I would have to be closer and not so far away. Besides, Wartortle had almost taken as much damage as he could.

"Now!"

"Dodge!" I cried as Sandslash appeared from behind Wartortle. Wartortle jumped and avoided the attack.

"Slash!"

"No!" I cried as Sandslash hit Wartortle with its powerful claws.

Wartortle hit the field and stayed down.

"Wartortle is unable to battle! The winner is Sandslash!" the ref cried.

I removed Wartortle's Pokeball. "Great job, take a rest." I said.

It was time for one of my Pokemon's gym debut. "Machoke, let's show 'em!" I cried.

I had practiced with Machoke, getting to know its battling style and the moves that it knew. I had had Machoke for a long time, but I had never used it in a gym battle before.

"Sandslash, use Swift."

"Use Karate Chop to block." I said.

Not one Swift star hit Machoke, who blocked them all.

"Use Sandstorm!" Ritchie cried. Not what I was expecting. I covered my eyes slightly to keep the sand from getting into them. Machoke wasn't able to move at the moment.

"Use Seismic Toss! I know you can do it." I cried. I watched as Machoke fought through the sand and winds to get to Sandslash. Machoke grabbed Sandslash and I winced at the impact when it hit the ground.

"Impressive, Adam. It's not easy for a Pokemon to battle through my Sandstorms like that." Ritchie said.

"Use Low Kick once Sandslash gets up."

"Dig!"

That was a smart move. Sandslash used Dig without standing up to be hit. Sandslash appeared behind Machoke.

"Karate Chop, behind you!" I cried. The practice had paid off. Machoke was able to hit Sandslash first, stopping the Dig attack.

"Use Slash!" Ritchie cried. I didn't have time to call out anything. Sandslash's claw struck Machoke head-on. "Now use Swift." Machoke, still in its dazed state, couldn't dodge the attack when I called out to dodge.

"Slash once more!"

"Wait for it..."

I watched as Sandslash got closer and closer. "Low Kick!" I cried.

"Stop!" Ritchie cried, trying to get Sandslash to back off.

Too late. Machoke's foot hit Sandslash and Sandslash was sent flying into the wall of the gym and fell to the ground. Ritchie looked at his fallen Pokemon.

"Sandslash is unable to battle! The winner is Machoke!" the ref cried.

Ritchie returned his fallen Pokemon and faced me. "I must say, that was an impressive Low Kick, very powerful. It's time to see how well you do against my final Pokemon and one of my most trusted friends. Marowak, go!"

"Use Bonemerang!" Ritchie cried, not wasting anytime.

"Dodge it!" I cried.

The move was a lot faster than I thought and faster than Machoke thought, too. The bone hit Machoke and then looped around and hit it once again.

"Use Headbutt, Marowak." Marowak ran at Machoke with its head ready.

"Wait for it, then use Seismic Toss!" Machoke stood ready to grab Marowak.

I saw Ritchie smirk and I knew that this was a trick.

"Bone Club, now!"

"No, Machoke!" I cried.

Marowak jumped right as Machoke made a grab for it and hit Machoke on the head with its Bone Club. Machoke was dazed.

"Finish this with Bone Rush." Ritchie said. I watched as Machoke was hit several times and fell to the ground, fainted. Ritchie's Marowak was stronger than I could've imagined and its attacks were very fast.

"Machoke is unable to battle! Marowak wins!" the ref cried.

"You did well, take a rest." I said, returning Machoke.

I removed my final Pokeball, which contained my trusted partner, Ivysaur. "Ivysaur, let's show 'em!" I cried.

"Use Razor Leaf!" I yelled. I had faith that Ivysaur could win against Marowak.

"Use your Bone Club to keep them away!" Ritchie cried.

I watched as Marowak hit most of the leaves away, only getting hit by a few. Still, some damage had been done, but that was an impressive counter move.

"Bonemerang!"

"Vine Whip!" I cried.

Marowak threw the bone and Ivysaur used Vine Whip. The vines wrapped around Marowak and Ivysaur was hit by the bone twice as it came back around. Marowak caught the bone right before Ivysaur slammed it into the ground with his vines. This was going to be a tough battle.

"Use Razor Leaf again!" I cried.

"Counter it and use Bone Rush!"

This time, Marowak jumped and avoided the attack and ran at Ivysaur, hitting it in the head. Ivysaur shook off the hit.

"Use Bonemerang once more!"

This wasn't good. This move was a long range attack and most of Ivysaur's attacks were long range attacks that could be avoided. It was hard to avoid Bonemerang because of its speed. The bone hit Ivysaur and flew past him.

"Vine Whip and Razor Leaf!" I cried. Marowak didn't have its bone at the moment so it couldn't counter my attack. If I could get this attack in at full power, then Marowak would suffer a great amount of damage, being a Ground Pokemon against my Grass Pokemon.

Ivysaur wrapped his vines around Marowak, preventing it from moving. Then he launched a hail of leaves, hitting full force! Ivysaur continued to use Razor Leaf even after he got hit by the bone and then the attack stopped.

I noted that Ivysaur was covered in scratches and looked ready to collapse. Marowak had taken a good amount of damage and it wouldn't last much longer, either.

"Use Headbutt!"

"Dodge it!" I cried.

Ivysaur went to dodge, but got hit. Ivysaur lay on the field, not moving.

"Ivysaur is-" the ref started, but stopped.

Ivysaur stood up and cried out his name and started to glow. Ivysaur grew larger and the flower on his back bloomed. When the light died down, Venusaur stood there. Ivysaur had evolved!

"Okay Venusaur, use Solarbeam!" I cried.

"Use Bone Rush!" Ritchie cried.

He was going to attack while Venusaur gathered energy. Marowak struck Venusaur and jumped back right as Venusaur finished gathering his energy.

"Do it!" I cried. The beam shot towards Marowak who put its bone up, trying to block it. But it was being overpowered. Marowak cried out as it was engulfed by the massive energy beam and when the attack ended, Marowak was on the ground, fainted.

"Marowak is unable to battle! Venusaur is the winner! Which means the winner is the challenger, Adam!" the ref cried.

"Way to go on evolving. You did great." I said, praising my partner. I pulled out my Pokedex and checked out my new Pokemon.

"Venusaur, the Seed Pokemon and the evolved form of Ivysaur. Venusaur uses its large petals to capture sunlight and transform it into energy."

Jason and Michelle ran down to me as Ritchie went to get the badge.

"Way to go! Now you can enter the Pokemon League!" Michelle cried, hugging me.

"Good job, Adam. You had me on the edge of my seat the whole time." Jason said. "I wasn't sure who was going to win until Ivysaur evolved."

Ritchie approached me. "Well Adam, you've earned it. Here's the Earth Badge. I must say, that was an impressive battle. I think you're even stronger than your dad was when he battled me." he said.

I removed the badge from the cushion and looked at it. I did it...I had won my final badge! I could now compete in the Pokemon League!

"My final badge!" I cried. I had done it...I had beaten the final gym and won. Now all that was left was for Jason to win his last badge. Michelle and I had won our final ribbon and badge that we needed to be in the Grand Festival and Pokemon League, now it was his turn.

**Author's Note: So Adam has defeated Ritchie, won his final badge, and his Ivysaur has evolved into Venusaur. All that's left is for Jason to win his final badge, too.**

**Stay tuned for Jason's battle with Ritchie in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	49. The Final Badge

**Jason's POV**

I stood, looking at Ritchie from across the battlefield.

"The battle between the challenger, Jason, and the gym leader, Ritchie, will now begin. This will be a three-on-three battle and will end when one's side Pokemon are unable to battle. Begin!"

"Sandslash, go!" Ritchie cried.

"Tangela, let's go!" I cried.

"Go ahead, Jason. Let's see what you've got." Ritchie said.

"Tangela, use Vine Whip!" I cried.

"Use Swift!" said Ritchie.

"Tangela, block it!"

Most of the Swift stars was stopped, but a few did hit Tangela.

"Impressive, Jason. Sandslash, use Dig!"

"Be alert, Tangela." I said as I watched for any signs of where Sandslash would appear. I had a strategy all planned out, but I had to wait to use it.

"San!" Sandslash cried, popping out of the ground to Tangela's right.

"Vine Whip!" I cried.

As Sandslash neared Tangela, the vines wrapped around Sandslash's body. With one quick motion, Sandslash was slammed into the ground.

"Use Absorb!" I cried while Sandslash was still down. Without hesitating, Tangela used Absorb. The vines started draining its energy.

"Slash at the vines!" Ritchie cried. Sandslash managed to successfully slash the vines, but a good amount of damage had been dealt.

"Use Dig!"

"Be alert...Behind you!" I cried as Sandslash appeared. My warning wasn't fast enough. Tangela didn't have enough time to dodge and got hit.

"Tangela, use Power Whip!"

"Dodge it!" Ritchie cried as Tangela's vines started to glow purple.

Sandslash started to burrow underground, but Tangela was quicker. Tangela's vines hit Sandslash, knocking it away from the hole that it had started to make.

"Sand!"

Sandslash got up, covered in scratches and breathing heavily. It wasn't over yet.

"Use Slash!"

"Dodge!" I cried.

Tangela went to dodge, but got hit.

"Slam!" I cried while Sandslash was still close by. Tangela got up and ran at Sandslash.

"Dodge!" Sandslash jumped.

"Up!" I cried.

Tangela followed Sandslash and successfully hit it with Slam while in the air. Sandslash slammed into the field and Tangela landed on the field.

"Sandslash is unable to battle! Tangela wins!" the ref cried.

"Impressive, Jason. Your Tangela is strong." Ritchie said. "Dugtrio, go!"

"Trio! Trio! Trio!"

"Use Dig!" Ritchie commanded. He was wasting no time.

"Tangela, be ready to use Absorb." I said, watching for any sign of Dugtrio.

Tangela cried out, getting hit directly by Dig. Dugtrio had appeared directly under where Tangela was standing. Tangela slammed down into the field, struggling to get up.

"Use Absorb!" I cried.

"Dodge and use Sand Tomb!"

Absorb missed and sand trapped Tangela. Tangela was trying to get free, but couldn't.

"Calm down, Tangela." I said.

"Slash!"

"Vine Whip!"

Dugtrio struck first and Tangela's vines missed.

The sand had broken thanks to the impact and Tangela fell forward, fainted.

"Thanks, Tangela. You did great. Take a rest." I said.

It was time to use my secret move that I had thought of yesterday after seeing Adam's battle.

"Graveler, let's go!" I cried.

"Use Sand Tomb!" yelled Ritchie.

"Rollout!" I cried.

Hopefully, the rolling would make Sand Tomb ineffective. Graveler rolled through the sand and slammed into Dugtrio.

"Impressive, Jason. Dugtrio, use Dig!"

I smirked. This is exactly what I wanted him to use. "Graveler, it's time to use Earthquake!" I cried. I regained my balance as the ground shook uncontrollably.

"Trio! Trio! Trio!" Dugtrio cried, appearing from under the ground.

I took in the way Dugtrio looked. Earthquake had done a lot of damage to it.

"I must say, Jason, I wasn't expecting that." Ritchie said.

"Earthquake does twice as much damage if the opposing Pokemon is using Dig! Now Graveler, use Stone Edge!"

"Dodge it!"

Dugtrio went underground and the rocks flew over the hole.

"Earthquake, Graveler!"

"Dugtrio, get out!" Ritchie cried.

The main way that his Pokemon avoided attacks was by going underground. Even without using Dig, I could still hurt Dugtrio with Earthquake while it's just avoiding an attack.

Dugtrio came out of the ground. Once again, it had received a good amount of damage.

"Use Slash!"

"Dodge it!" I cried.

Graveler couldn't dodge in time.

"Use Rollout!" I cried. Dugtrio took the attack head-on, not having time to dodge. Dugtrio stared at Graveler before it fainted.

"Dugtrio is unable to battle! Graveler wins!" the ref cried.

"You've trained Graveler well, Jason. Time to see how you do against Marowak. Go!" Ritchie cried.

I knew that Marowak relied on its bone to attack. I couldn't use attacks that were close range, I would need to use long range attacks.

"Use Rollout!"

"Jump into the air!"

Marowak jumped and avoided it. Graveler rolled out of the attack and I saw Ritchie smirk.

"Graveler, move!" I cried

"Bone Rush!"

I watched as Graveler got hit multiple times by the bone.

"Now use Bonemerang!"

"Dodge!" I cried.

Graveler was still dazed from Bone Rush and got hit by the attack.

"Finish it with Headbutt." Ritchie said.

"Dodge!"

Graveler was able to dodge this time, but I quickly noticed that Marowak was behind Graveler now.

"Bone Rush!" Marowak had speed on its side. Graveler is a very slow Pokemon.

"Get away using Rollout!" I cried. Graveler was able to use Rollout and got to the other side of the field.

"Bonemerang!"

"No, Graveler!" I cried.

Graveler looked at me and then fell forward.

"Graveler is unable to battle! Marowak wins!" the ref cried.

"Good job, Graveler. Take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

I removed my final Pokeball. It was up to Golduck now. "Golduck, go!" I cried.

"Marowak, use Bonemerang!" Ritchie cried.

"Dodge it! Then use Water Gun!"

Golduck dodged the first attack and successfully hit Marowak once before getting hit by the bone from behind.

"Use Aqua Jet!" I cried.

"Dodge it!"

Golduck shot towards Marowak, and at the last second, Marowak dodged.

"Use Headbutt!"

"Jump!" I cried when Marowak was close.

Golduck jumped into the air.

"Hydro Pump!" Golduck spun and shot the attack directly at Marowak. Golduck landed near Marowak, who was getting up.

"Bone Rush!" Ritchie shouted. Golduck got hit before I could even finish saying "dodge" and shook his head, dazed.

"Bonemerang!"

"Golduck, use Confusion on the bone." I said.

I saw Ritchie's expression, he looked shocked. Golduck looked at the bone and I hoped that this would work. I saw a contest move once and the coordinator had frisbees and they had their Pokemon use Confusion on the frisbee to move it.

The bone was stopped in the air and slung back towards Marowak.

"Grab your bone!" Ritchie screamed. Marowak went to grab it, but Golduck had control of it and jerked it away at the last second and slammed it into Marowak.

"I must say, that's very impressive. I've never seen that done before, Jason."

"Thanks,"

Marowak looked like it wouldn't last much longer.

"Golduck, use Hydro Pump!"

"Counter it!"

Marowak held its bone up and stood its ground against the water. It slid backwards from the force, but the Hydro Pump attack ended.

"Bone Rush!"

"Confusion!" I cried.

Marowak ran towards Golduck, but Confusion stopped it in its tracks. Marowak was raised into the air and then slammed into the ground. Marowak didn't get up.

"Marowak is unable to battle! Golduck wins! Which means the challenger, Jason, is the winner!" the ref cried.

"Thanks, Golduck. Rest now." I said.

I had done it. I had beaten Ritchie. I was getting my eighth gym badge. I was going to get to compete in the Pokemon League!

"Well Jason, that was a great battle. I present you with the Earth Badge." Ritchie said, extending the cushion.

Right as I picked up the badge, the doors opened and Ash walked in.

"I just won my final badge." I said.

"Congratulations to both of you. You both beat Ritchie on your first try. Even I couldn't do that." Ash said.

"Shouldn't you be resting?" Adam asked his dad.

"I got released from the hospital and headed here since you were all here already. I'm not fully recovered, but I'm well enough to go home."

"Glad to see you on your feet now, Ash. I wish both of you boys the best of luck challenging the Pokemon League. If you'll excuse me, I have to get ready for another battle. Bye." Ritchie said.

"Bye,"

**Adam's POV**

We walked out of the gym and I looked at everyone. "Well, we have all of our badges and ribbons, and dad, you're out of the hospital now. There's only one thing left to do."

I paused and looked at him. "It's time to go home and see everyone again." I said, smiling.

My dad smiled, too. I knew that he had to be thinking of seeing my mom again, along with Gary, Leaf, and his Pokemon. It had been a long time since he'd seen anyone.

"I can't wait to see mom's face when she sees you." I said.

My dad nodded his head and faced Michelle.

"Michelle, don't come with us." he said.

She looked confused and slightly hurt.

Okay...why was he saying for her to not come with us? I looked at Jason and he looked confused, too.

"Go home to Cerulean City and get your mom. Get your mom to come to Pallet Town with you." he said.

Of course! Misty would want to see him. After all, she was worried about him being missing when we first met her.

"How will I get her to come? I mean, I won't be with Adam and Jason when I come home. Wouldn't that make her curious?" she asked.

"Don't mention that I'm back. Just tell her that there's someone in Pallet Town that wants to see her again." said my dad.

She walked over to Jason and I and hugged us. "Okay, bye, guys. I'll see you later. I'll be in Pallet Town, back with my mom as soon as I can."

"Bye,"

"Bye,"

She waved over her shoulder and walked towards the path to Cerulean City while my dad, Jason, and myself headed towards Pallet Town. I couldn't wait until we got home.

_I did it. I finally found him and now we're heading home. Only one more step to go. How's mom gonna react? I bet she'll be happy...no, happy is an understatement. She's going to be...Arceus knows what since she's missed him so much._

I looked at my dad and his eyes looked thoughtful. It was great to have him back. He's safe now and back for good. We walked in a comfortable silence.

As we walked, I realized that I was probably going to get an ear full from mom about being in danger since I had challenged Team Rocket because they had captured dad. It'll be worth it, though. Because dad's back. My family isn't broken anymore.

* * *

><p><strong>Ash's POV<strong>

At long last, we stood on top of the hill overlooking Pallet Town. It's a sight that I never get tired of seeing.

_After eight months...I'm finally returning home. All thanks to Adam, Jason, and Michelle. I can't thank them enough for putting so much effort into finding me and never giving up. I wonder if anything has changed? And how is everyone going to react?_

_If Gary still acts like how he used to, he's going to make a joke, but be glad to see me. Leaf will most likely hug me until she believes it's really me. I can't even imagine how Dawn's going to react when she sees me. I can't wait to see her again, to hold her. I've missed her so much. _I thought, looking down at my wedding ring.

"Well boys, let's go home." I said to Adam and Jason. We walked down the hill and into Pallet Town.

**Author's Note: With Jason winning his final gym badge, the kids can at last enter the Pokemon League and Grand Festival.**

**And after a long, long time, Ash is back home in Pallet Town. How will his friends and family react when they see him again?**

**Stay tuned for the big reunion with Ash in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	50. All Together Again

**Normal POV**

Ash, Adam, and Jason walked through Pallet Town, passing the lab. It was late in the afternoon when they had finally gotten into town.

"I'll go and get my mom and dad and we'll head over to your house to meet you." Jason said.

"Wait a few minutes before you head over. I want Dawn to see me before anyone else does." Ash said.

Jason nodded his head and ran over to the door, looking over his shoulder and waiting until Ash and Adam were out of sight before opening it.

As the two got closer to their house, Ash was becoming more and more excited with every step he took. At long last, he was finally back in his hometown and so close to seeing his family and friends again.

As Adam opened the door, Ash walked in and hid behind the wall.

"Call your mom." he said.

Adam smiled and nodded his head as he closed the door. "Mom? Mom, I'm home!" Adam called.

Footsteps were heard and Dawn appeared. "Adam! You're home!" she cried, walking closer.

Ash stepped out from behind the wall and got behind Dawn. He placed his hands over her eyes, making her stand still.

"Surprise! Guess who?" he said into her ear.

Dawn couldn't believe her ears as she gasped at the sound of his voice. Once Ash removed his hands, she turned around. Her eyes were wide and tears were visible.

"A-Ash!" she cried, hugging her husband.

Ash held her against him tightly, running his fingers through her hair. He knew that Dawn liked it when he did that. She looked at him with many tears trailing down her cheeks.

"I missed you so much." she said softly.

Ash rubbed his thumbs across her cheeks, wiping the tears away. "I missed you, too. I thought of you, Adam, my Pokemon, and everyone else while I was away." he said.

He leaned down and kissed her soft lips. Once they parted, Dawn rested her head against Ash's chest, listening to his heartbeat. It felt so good to be together again.

"You're back... Please tell me that this isn't a dream." she said, looking at him as more tears fell from her eyes.

"It's not a dream. I'm home now." he said, kissing her forehead.

"We're all together again. Our family is together again." Adam said. He was so happy that he had reunited his family. His parents smiled at him and he walked over, joining the hug.

"That we are." Ash agreed.

Dawn smiled happily, glad that both of her boys were back. The lonely and lost feeling that she had felt for so long was fading away and so was the ache of missing the man that she loved.

"Oh! Piplup! Buneary! Come and see who's home!" Dawn called.

The two Pokemon appeared and saw Ash and Adam, along with two Pikachus.

"Bun!"

"Pip! Piplup!"

The two Pokemon ran at Ash happily, greeting him and then running over to Pikachu and started talking to him.

"Who's the other Pikachu?" Dawn asked as she wiped away her tears.

"That was my Pichu, he's recently evolved." Adam said.

"You're so much like your father, Adam. It's unbelievable." she said, smiling at her son.

The door suddenly opened and Jason walked in with Gary and Leaf following behind him.

"Why did you-" Gary started and then stopped, seeing Ash.

"Ash!" Leaf cried, her eyes widening.

"...Ashy Boy, welcome back. I'm glad you're home." Gary said.

"I'm glad to be back." he said, walking over to his two oldest and closest friends.

Ash and Gary gave each other a quick hug. Then Leaf hugged Ash tightly as she let out a few tears.

"Don't ever do that again, Ash. We really missed you." she said, shaking her head and wiping at her eyes.

Ash smiled at her and pulled away.

"What?" Ash asked, seeing that Gary was looking at him.

"It's just unbelievable. Eight months missing and now you're back."

"What? You believed that I was dead?"

"No, but a lot of other people did, though."

"So I've heard. The Elite Four told me about what people were saying about me and about the tournament to decide a new Pokemon Master."

"It's good to have you back though, Ash."

The door opened again and Delia and Johanna walked inside.

Delia gasped as she caught sight of Ash. "You're...You're back." she said shakily.

"Mom..." Ash said quietly.

She started walking to him and Ash met her, both hugging one another.

"My boy is back. Thank Arceus. I missed you so much, Ash." she said, crying.

Ash closed his eyes. "I missed you too, mom." he said softly.

She held him for a little longer than necessary, but she wanted to make sure that he was actually there. Home, safe and sound. She kissed his forehead and released him, smiling and wiping at her face.

Johanna approached him and gave him a hug. "Welcome home, Ash. I'm so glad that you're home." she said.

"Thank you, Johanna. What are you doing here in Pallet Town, let alone in Kanto?" he questioned, pulling away.

"I came to help Dawn after your disappearance. She needed some support and comfort." she replied.

"Thank you for doing that."

"Not a problem, Ash. I'd do anything for my little girl."

They made their way into the living room, finally moving from the hall. Dawn looked around and noticed that someone was missing.

"Where's Michelle?" she asked.

"She's gone home to get Misty. I wanted Misty to know that I was back as well and I wanted her to see me in person. So Michelle's bringing her here to see me." Ash answered.

"Ash, where were you all this time?" Dawn asked.

"Yeah, where?"

At once, the question was being repeated and asked by everyone.

"I'll answer that when Misty and Michelle get here. I want Misty to hear everything, too. Plus, I won't have to tell the whole story twice." Ash said to everyone.

He looked out of the window. "I'm going to go visit my Pokemon at the lab." Ash said, standing up.

"Okay, I'll start fixing supper. I'll make your favorites." Dawn said.

"We'll help you, Dawn." said Delia and Johanna.

Ash nodded his head with a smile on his face. It had been a long time since he had tasted Dawn's cooking and a long time since he'd had a decent meal. He said a small goodbye and walked to the door, Pikachu leaping onto his shoulder.

"Chu..." Pikachu said, nuzzling into Ash's cheek as they walked to the lab, glad that his trainer was finally back with his family.

Ash rubbed Pikachu's head and stopped in the field behind the lab. He removed his Pokeballs, which contained the Pokemon that he had with him when he was captured.

"Come on out!" he cried, tossing the Pokeballs into the air.

The Pokemon appeared, stretching and letting out their names. They hadn't been let out since that fateful day. Looking up, they saw Ash and cried their names happily as they charged at him.

"I'm sorry to have worried you all. You all did great and I thank you for trying to protect me." he said.

Pikachu jumped into the air and released a Thunderbolt into the sky, letting all of Ash's Pokemon out in the field know that he had finally returned. The ground started to shake and his Pokemon came running in from every angle, all saying their names happily and staring at Ash.

"Donphan, Torterra, Blastoise, Tauros, Swellow, everyone! I missed you all!" he said.

Meganium made her way to him and rubbed against him, happy to see him again.

"Meg! Meg! Meganium!"

"I missed you too, Meganium." Ash said, rubbing her head.

He stayed in the field for a long time, just being with his Pokemon friends again. He had missed them all and was glad to be back with them.

* * *

><p>The next morning, sunlight streamed in through the curtains and onto Ash's and Dawn's faces. They had spent their first night together in a long time. It was the first night that they hadn't slept alone in over eight months.<p>

Ash opened his eyes and looked at Dawn with a small smile. He kissed her forehead and she stirred. She opened her eyes and smiled at him. She sighed softly and put her hands on top of Ash's hands, which were around her waist.

"I woke up so many mornings alone in bed while you were away. I missed you being with me. I missed waking up in the morning with you beside me. I missed your warmth, especially when you held me and comforted me if I had a nightmare...I was so sad and lonely."

Ash placed a soft kiss to her lips and looked at her lovingly. "I know...I missed being with you, too." he said quietly.

After getting up and dressed and fixing her hair, Dawn stood in front of the stove, cooking breakfast. Their first meal as a complete family once again. Ash walked into the kitchen dressed in jeans, a plain black t-shirt that was under a red hoodie (the same style of hoodie that he had worn in Hoenn), and black and white sneakers. He had also added his Sinnoh hat. It felt good to be back in his own clothes again.

Ash set the table while Dawn cooked, since Adam hadn't come out of his room yet. Right as Dawn placed the last Oran Berry pancake onto the plate, Adam walked into the kitchen.

"Morning," he greeted. It felt so good to be home again with both of his parents.

"Morning, sweetie." Dawn said, kissing his head.

"Morning, Adam." Ash said, ruffling his hair.

The three sat at the table and started eating. As they ate, Adam couldn't help but think that this is how it would have been if his dad wasn't captured when he started his journey. They would be sitting at the table, eating and talking about what he was thinking of doing on his journey. He couldn't help but feel both happy and sad thinking about what could have been if his dad had not been missing at the time. Pushing the thought away, he continued to eat his breakfast, just glad that his family was together once more.

They had just finished and Ash and Dawn were washing the dishes when there was a knock on the door.

"I'll get it." Adam said, hopping up.

He walked to the front door and opened it and was surprised to see Michelle and Misty. He was shocked that they had gotten to Pallet Town in only one day.

"Michelle said that I had to come here as soon as possible, saying that someone wanted to see me. She wouldn't tell me anything else. Is everything okay?" Misty said.

"Yeah, come inside. Wait here and I'll be right back." he said, stepping aside and letting them enter.

Adam walked back into the kitchen and keeping his voice quiet, he told his parents who was at the door. Ash followed Adam out of the kitchen and Dawn walked out shortly after the two.

Michelle looked up and saw Ash. She looked at her mom and motioned in front of them. Misty turned her head and saw Ash. She stared at him in shock. A part of her was not believing that it was really him and the other part was fighting the urge to run and hug him at that moment. Then he smiled at her and that's when she knew that he was really there.

Even though Ash was married and Misty had been briefly married once in the past, a part of her still loved him and would always love him. He held a place in her heart no matter what. Ash was Misty's first love, even if their relationship only went as far as friendship and nothing more.

She walked over to Ash and hugged him. "Welcome back..." she said softly as she smiled with joy.

Dawn stared at Misty. Dawn knew that Misty cared for Ash and she knew about her feelings for him, but the two women were on good terms with each other. Dawn knew that Misty wouldn't try to break their family up like Kenny would and Misty knew that Ash was faithful to Dawn and that he loved Dawn over her. Misty wasn't going to risk an irreplaceable friendship with Ash over trying to get him to feel the same way that she did. She cared about Ash enough to respect his decisions and put his happiness before her own.

"It's so great that you're back." Misty said as she released him and wiped away a tear that ran down her cheek.

She still couldn't believe that he was here, she was just so happy that he was back. Looking at Dawn and Adam, she couldn't help but smile at the sight. Dawn was smiling and looked like her old self once more and Adam looked so happy to be with his dad again. Misty knew how close the three of them were.

"Well, how about we all go to the lab?" Ash asked. "I bet that there's a lot you want to know about me and where I've been."

* * *

><p>The three kids and their parents were all in the field behind the lab, sitting on the grass. Adam, Jason, and Michelle tossed their Pokeballs so that their parents could see the Pokemon that they had caught while on their journey.<p>

Adam's team consisted of Pikachu, Venusaur, Charmeleon, Pidgeot, Wartortle, Machoke, and Haunter. Jason's team consisted of Charizard, Fearow, Golduck, Tangela, Graveler, and Haunter. Michelle's team consisted of Jolteon, Poliwhirl, Arcanine, Togetic, and Gastly.

"Go and play, have some fun." they said to their Pokemon. The Pokemon ran off in different directions.

"Michelle, Eevee wasn't there. Was Jolteon the Pokemon that Eevee evolved into?" Misty asked, since she had given Eevee to Michelle at the start of her journey.

"Yes, I gave Eevee the choice to pick which Eeveelution to evolve into. She chose Jolteon." Michelle explained.

Ash looked around and noticed that his Charizard was very friendly to Charmeleon. "Adam, why is Charizard acting so friendly? He doesn't usually take to the other Pokemon." Ash asked.

"Charmeleon is one of Charizard's children. Back when he was a Charmander, when I left the lab on the day I began my journey, he followed me, wanting to come along."

Ash nodded his head. He was glad that one of his most trusted Pokemon's offspring had gone with his son.

"So Michelle, how did you end up traveling with them?" Ash asked.

"I started traveling with them after they battled my mom for their badges. My tenth birthday had just passed and my mom was planning on letting me start my journey. I wasn't expecting anything to happen because I thought that I would be traveling alone, but I'm so glad that I met them both." Michelle said.

"Honestly, I wasn't expecting anyone else to join us, either. But having Michelle around isn't too bad." Jason said with a smirk, teasing her.

"It was actually Misty's suggestion that she should travel with us." Adam added.

Adam then decided to mention some of the events that had occurred on their journey. "We met your Butterfree, dad." he said.

"Really?" he asked.

"Yeah. Trainers were gathering to let their Butterfrees go and find a partner, as well as see some past ones that had come back. Your Butterfree was one of them. Butterfree mistook me for you and was pretty sad when he realized that it wasn't you. But then he recognized Pikachu and he told Butterfree who I was."

"I had to make a tough decision that day. I chose to let my Butterfree go and we made a friend with the other Butterfree's trainer." Jason said.

"You had a Butterfree?"

"Yeah, but I wanted Butterfree to have a chance at love and to be happy, just like you did."

"Oh, remember the hidden village you told me about? The place where you found Bulbasaur? We went there, I was able to remember where it was and find it again. We met Melanie." Adam said.

"Did you hit any traps along the way?"

"We didn't, but Jason did." Michelle said, pointing to herself and Adam.

"Yeah...stupid rope." he muttered.

The adults laughed.

"I also discovered that I have Aura. I can't really use it, though." Adam said.

"You have Aura?" Dawn asked.

"When did you find this out?" Ash asked.

"When we were at the Fuchsia Gym. Janine had thrown ninja stars at us as a test of speed and...well, a shield was formed in front of us from my Aura." he explained. "I can't explain how it happened, my mind just went blank and my body seemed to take over and act on its own."

"Hmm...well, it seems like my Aura ability was passed down to you." Ash said.

"That gym was the craziest gym that we've ever gone to." Michelle said.

"And the most dangerous." Jason added.

Adam and Michelle nodded in agreement.

"I won against Harrison in a tie at the Cinnabar Gym." Adam said.

"A tie? You mean all of the Pokemon fainted?"

"No, I asked to battle his Blaziken only. I was able to get my badge, but it was a tie."

"You battled Harrison's Blaziken? At least you won your badge and it ended in a tie. I lost the first time that I battled him."

Adam nodded his head.

"Did you have to dress as a girl to challenge Erika?" Ash asked.

Misty laughed, remembering when Ash had dressed as a girl just to challenge Erika.

"No, I didn't have to dress as a girl."

"Lucky..."

Dawn laughed at Ash's pouting.

"How's Sabrina? Is she still creepy?" he asked.

"No, she's still herself. We were a little scared of her at first when we met her." Adam said.

"She knew our names before we said anything." Michelle said. "She used her Psychic powers to read our minds."

"But she told us her part of the story about how you changed her back to normal that you mentioned a few times to us." Jason added.

Ash couldn't believe everything that they had accomplished. His own son had challenged Harrison's Blaziken, a Pokemon that he wasn't able to beat. All three of them had gained the final badge or ribbon that they needed to enter the final step into reaching their goals. They had come a long way, from what Ash could see.

"Oh yeah, look at what I got from Erika." Michelle said, digging in her bag and pulling out her bottle of perfume.

Misty's eyes widened in shock. "Wow. Michelle, you've never worn perfume before. I want you to know that I'm proud of you. You've matured so much on your journey. In your contests, you aren't the tomboy that you were when you left, you're acting more your age now and you're growing up and maturing."

Michelle smiled and looked at the perfume bottle. "I hadn't even realized that I had changed so much. But now that you mention it, I can see it. Before I left home, I would never wear a dress, perfume, or even think of wearing heels. But now I don't mind any of that, I'm actually starting to enjoy it. My personality was changing all this time and I didn't even know it!"

The kids had said everything that they could think of, so Adam decided to ask about what had happened to Ash. "What happened to you, dad?" Adam asked.

"Well, that day I went into the forest, deep into the forest like I always do to train. I was training for a little while when I heard leaves crunching, twigs breaking, and I sensed something that wasn't good. My Pokemon stopped training and we waited for whatever it was to come out and show itself." Ash explained.

"Before I knew it, an ambush was happening. Four Pokemon Hunters working for Team Rocket and around one hundred grunts and their Pokemon emerged from the trees, the air, every angle. My six Pokemon fought for as long as they could, trying to beat them, but there were just too many and my Pokemon became too exhausted to battle. I didn't have anywhere to run and I was tied up and taken away. Pikachu was left on the ground, hurt, and I thought that he wasn't going to make it.

"Every day that went by, I couldn't help but worry about him. I almost believed that he was dead. I barely had anything to eat while I was in Team Rocket's prison, most of the time I was starving. They only gave me enough to keep me alive. Not one day went by that I didn't think of my Pokemon and my family and friends. They were the only thing that was keeping me going day after day."

"There was blood at the crime scene, though. Whose blood was that?" Dawn asked.

Ash closed his eyes, remembering what had happened. "Some of the grunts were killed by the Pokemon Hunters. They were killed because they were cowards for trying to flee when their Pokemon were beaten by my Pokemon. Those Pokemon Hunters were the most brutal people I've ever seen. They were so ruthless, Hunter J was nothing compared to them."

All of the adults, minus Leaf, were shocked. They had each run into Team Rocket at least once on their journeys and they couldn't believe what had been revealed. The Team Rocket they knew didn't exist anymore and it was replaced by an organization that was far more evil and far more dangerous.

"Why did they capture you? What did they want you for?" Leaf asked.

"They wanted me to activate the Temple of Legends. The Temple of Legends was where a person with a special Aura could summon the Legendary Pokemon thousands of years ago. The person was known as the Chosen One, that's why they captured me. They knew that I was the one who could activate the temple and summon every Legendary Pokemon for them to capture and use to take over Kanto." Ash explained. "I did activate the temple and they almost succeeded, but they were stopped."

"It's like Shamouti Island all over. You won then and you won now." Misty said. She couldn't believe that Team Rocket had almost succeeded in taking over Kanto, none of them could.

"So how were you rescued?" asked Gary.

"That thanks goes to Adam, Jason, and Michelle. The Elite Four came to visit me while I was still in the hospital, recovering. They told me that Adam told Koga in Fuchsia City that he believed Team Rocket had done something to me and that they were looking for the Temple of Legends. The Elite Four started looking for any information that they could find and eventually found the location of the temple, but at the same time that Team Rocket did.

"By the time they reached the temple, I had almost activated it. Everything was becoming a mess. The Elite Four, minus Lance, and the Hunters and the boss were trapped under fallen rocks in the underground temple. I knew that I had to stop the chaos and I used my Aura to close the portal that had formed. Once I drained all of the Aura from the portal, I was left with this strange mark on my hand. Apparently, it means that I can control the Legendary Pokemon.

"Team Rocket was so close to succeeding and I didn't want to do any of what I did, but I had to. It was dangerous, but I had to keep everyone safe."

"Well, you went through a lot, Ash."

"Reckless as ever."

They all knew that no matter what the danger was, Ash wouldn't do anything unless he had to. He would always put everyone else before himself.

"Have you met any friends on your journey, Adam? Made any rivals?"

"We've met quite a few. Trevor and Nikki, Blair, and Amber."

"All are coordinators except for Trevor, he's a trainer." Michelle said.

"What are they like?"

"Trevor and Nikki are brother and sister. Twins, to be exact. They're the same age as us. Nikki's really kind and hyper and Trevor is the complete opposite." Michelle said.

"Trevor has changed, though. He used to act how Paul did...well, how you explained Paul had acted. He's no longer mean to us, he's nice now and considers us his friends." Adam added. "When we met Trevor and Nikki, Trevor really did remind me of Paul. He acted like Paul did with his Pokemon and towards his sister."

"He's a tough opponent for both of us, too. He didn't exactly make Adam feel confident, since he kept talking bad about him." Jason said.

"Anyway, Blair was the other Butterfree's trainer that I mentioned. She's nice and acts like a tomboy. She's four years older than us."

"Amber is nice, but a little strange. When we met her, she seemed to be hiding something. Her Aura was strange. She's our age." Adam said.

"Nikki, Blair, and Amber are all tough rivals to have, too. Nikki informs me of every contest and the others do too, but it's mainly Nikki. They were all able to beat me at least once in a contest and all won their final ribbons before me. I think Blair would have to be the toughest since she watched me perform with Gastly at one contest and figured out my strategy. So when I battled her in the next contest, she knew what I was planning." Michelle explained.

Their parents were glad that they had made friends and had some tough rivals.

"Oh, speaking of Paul, we ran into him." Adam said.

"You did?" Ash asked.

"Yes. We stumbled upon him training and I knew who he was. He made me mad and I challenged him to a battle and I lost badly. I didn't knock any of his Pokemon out. He called me weak and pathetic, saying that I was just like you." Adam said.

"He told us that he was going to enter the tournament to become the new Pokemon Master. He seemed so sure that he was going to win and when we asked why, he released a Pokemon. He caught Latias from Altomare. He said that he had heard of the stories and went there hunting Latias and Latios, but only found Latias. Latias has felt miserable ever since she was captured."

"A Legendary Pokemon shouldn't be captured against their will. They're meant to be free." Jason said.

Ash was shocked. Latias had befriended him when he was in Altomare. Why would Paul capture Latias just so that he could defeat him?

"You're right, Jason. Unlike wild Pokemon, they aren't meant to be captured against their will. They should be free to do as they wish, not have to battle for a trainer unless they choose to come with a trainer or fight by the trainer's side. It seems like Paul's the same as he has always been. He never did change." Ash said.

Ash was also shocked that they had run into a boy that had acted like Paul. At least Trevor was able to change his ways.

"So why did Trevor change?"

"You'll understand once we explain. We ran into Team Rocket a lot of times on our journey. The first time was in Mt. Moon." Adam said.

"We were just walking and heard talking. We went to investigate and found Team Rocket grunts, they were looking for Moon Stones to collect. We were going to take them on, but they ran. We chased after them and they lead us to the higher-ranking grunts." Jason explained.

"We weren't going to back down. We wanted information, we knew that they had to know something about your disappearance, I couldn't shake the feeling that they had something to do with it. So we battled for a little while, until something happened." Adam added.

"Their Pokemon had gotten in front and were going to attack us head-on. Our Pokemon couldn't protect us. We thought we were done for, but when we opened our eyes, a Flamethrower had protected us and blocked their attacks."

"Someone saved us that day. We also told Officer Jenny about the attack and Team Rocket, but she didn't believe Team Rocket could be back. We then told Misty and she believed us."

Their parents were quiet.

"That's not even close to the end. The next attack was at the hidden village. That's when we found out that Team Rocket may have had something to do with your disappearance. They told us you were dead, though." Adam said.

"Then there was the S.S. Ketchum attack..." Jason trailed.

"What?" Ash asked. He didn't know about this.

"I had lost a contest and Adam bought tickets for us to go on the S.S. Ketchum cruise ship as a gift to cheer me up." Michelle explained.

"During the night, the ship was attacked and destroyed. Everyone died except for us. Team Rocket was behind the attack, but they didn't know we were on the ship or they wouldn't have attacked. You see, they wanted us captured. They were going to use us as hostages to persuade Ash to cooperate with their plans." Jason said.

"Then we met the four Pokemon Hunters, each one of them. We were attacked by them, but always managed to escape, but not without paying for it." Adam said softly.

"We met Hunter Oliver first. We had stumbled upon their vehicles and challenged them to a battle, trying to stop their plans. We beat the first set of grunts, but more came. We ran, knowing we couldn't take them all on." Adam explained.

"We ran, and while running, I tripped. Eevee was turned to stone and I was frozen in fear. He shot me and turned me to stone." Michelle said.

"I tried to run back before she was turned to stone, but Jason was thinking clearly. I wasn't. He stopped me from going back so I wouldn't get us all caught. We ran and ran until we finally got somewhere safe." Adam said.

"Adam was able to come up with a plan for us to get onto the ship. We stole one of their vehicles and drove it onto the ship and then searched for Michelle." Jason said.

"Hunter Oliver wanted me to answer his questions. He had his Raichu use Thunder on Eevee when I wouldn't answer him. He wanted me to answer his questions and each time I didn't, he was going to attack Eevee. He said that if Eevee died, then he would start attacking me. He then changed his mind and decided to let me feel what Eevee felt. He lowered the lever and my body was no longer stone, but I couldn't even move if I wanted to. He had his Raichu use Thunder on me before turning me back to stone. He then questioned me. He wanted to know anything that we knew. When he left, I was terrified and I didn't want to see him again. He scared me so much." said Michelle.

This was the first time that Adam and Jason had heard about how she actually felt when she was there. She had only told them what he had done to her.

"We eventually found Michelle, but we became trapped in the room where she was being kept. This is also where we found Machoke and Graveler, they were two Pokemon that he had captured. We were trapped and didn't have any way to escape. There was only a window." Jason said.

"I was able to think of a plan. I had Pikachu break the window. We jumped out and had Pidgey and Spearow use Gust and Whirlwind to keep us from falling too fast, but it wasn't enough. They then evolved in the sky and with their new power, we landed safely on the ground." Adam finished.

"The next Pokemon Hunter we ran into was Mya. She was able to capture me and Jason, but not Michelle. I pushed Michelle off of a cliff that had a rushing river below it. I got hit by the shot meant for Michelle." Adam said.

Jason couldn't say anything that had happened, because he was stone the whole time.

"Once I woke up on the side of the river downstream, I knew what Adam had done. He had saved me from getting captured. I had to find them, but I didn't know where they were. Togetic, though, knew where and with her help, I was able to find the ship. I ran and hid under a slow-moving vehicle and was able to get onto the ship without being noticed. I walked around and found the room where they were being kept, it had two grunts outside guarding the door." Michelle said.

Adam closed his eyes. He wondered how the adults were going to react once they learned what Mya did to him. "Mya came into the room where we were. She...she had her Froslass freeze my hands and feet to the wall. I thought she wanted information, but she said that the torture was for her own fun. I wanted to know why the boss wanted us captured, but she said that she didn't know. I asked her what Team Rocket did to my dad, and she said that I was smart for figuring out that they had something to do with his disappearance. She said that you were killed. Then she froze my whole body besides my head and left me to freeze."

"By the time I made it into the room, Adam was barely conscious and his lips were blue and he was pale. Jason and Pikachu were stone. I had Growlithe melt the ice and I got Jason and Pikachu out." said Michelle.

"I was afraid that Adam was dead since he was barely breathing and it took him a while to answer me when I spoke. We were pulling Adam up when Mya walked in and blocked the door. We couldn't escape. Then a man and his Kadabra fell from the vent above and saved us, teleporting us out of the ship and back to the ground. We were able to get Adam warmed up and save him."

The parents were stunned and just decided to remain quiet, knowing that this story wasn't over yet. It was going to be a while. A small silence passed over the three. They were about to tell the worst story of all the Hunters.

"And this is how Trevor changed." Adam said. "We left Neon Town and were in the forest. Trevor and Nikki had caught up to us and Nikki suggested that we travel together for a little while. We didn't know that we were being watched and followed. We walked out into a clearing and we got surrounded. Grunts were everywhere with Pokemon out and ready to attack, but their eyes were glowing red. They were being mind-controlled. Pokemon Hunter Michael stepped out and Trevor, he changed completely."

"Trevor had lost his best friend to Michael in the past, his parents told us this when we went to their house in Neon Town." Michelle said.

"Pikachu was able to get us an opening and we took it. We ran from Team Rocket and found a cave and hid...but Nikki wasn't with us. She had fallen behind because she was a slow runner. Michael had captured her." said Adam. "We were able to stop Trevor from doing anything stupid. We then came up with a plan and while Jason and Michelle made a distraction, Trevor and myself got onto the ship and searched for Nikki.

"We found Nikki, but...she was scarred for life. Mentally and emotionally scarred. Michael had violated her. When we got her back to the cave, Trevor tried to leave to stop Michael for good because of what he did to his friend and sister. We stopped him, but then he broke down. He had lost his best friend, not being able to protect her, and he couldn't protect his own sister. He couldn't handle it. That's when he changed his ways."

"Then we met Darien." said Michelle.

"He killed his Crobats when they failed to capture us. We were in the air over water when this attack happened." Jason said.

"We landed on a nearby deserted island and Darien followed. He attacked us and he had the chance to capture us, but he didn't. He left us alone."

"We then met Antonio on the day we left for Viridian City again. He revealed that he had saved us in Mt. Moon, in the ship attack, and from Mya. He told us that Team Rocket's plans were almost complete. He said that their base was hidden west of Viridian City and that's where we were heading." Adam said.

"He told us the history of Team Rocket. He told us that Giovanni had escaped, along with some grunts, when dad and the Elite Four attacked their base all those years ago, forcing them to disband. He hired a Pokemon Hunter to make sure that Team Rocket would never be defeated again. The Hunter was promised that he would rule alongside Giovanni, but then Giovanni found out about the Temple of Legends.

"The Hunter turned against Giovanni and killed him. He made himself the new leader and made Team Rocket bigger and stronger and more brutal. Anyone who opposed him was killed. He told us that James, Jessie, and Meowth were killed, since they were weak. The weak members were killed, too.

"Antonio told us that he was the son of Giovanni. We found out that he fell in love and had a daughter after Team Rocket disbanded. He wanted to leave his father and his evil ways, but he couldn't because his family was threatened. Once his father was killed, he became the main target and his wife was killed after he fled. He was too late to save her but he found his daughter. She was taken to live with her grandmother and he never came back.

"Once we reached the base, he told us of a plan. He was able to destroy the base, but we had gotten captured trying to save dad. Antonio told us that if we ever found his daughter, we'd tell her that he loves her and misses her. Her name was Amber. We think that it's our friend that we met, but we aren't sure.

"Darien took us to the Temple of Legends. The boss nearly killed Michelle with his Scyther as a threat that Ash had to activate the temple. After the final battle, all of the Pokemon Hunters were captured, except Michael who wasn't there at the time. He and the boss are still out there somewhere."

The children looked at their parents. "We're sorry for putting ourselves in danger. We've had close calls, but we always saved each other." Jason said.

"We can trust each other with our lives. But we're sorry." Michelle said.

"We're sorry that we put ourselves in so much danger. But I wanted to find dad. I wanted to make my family and friends happy again. It was my secret goal ever since I left Pallet Town on my journey. I was going to find him and bring him home." Adam said.

"Why would you even challenge all these people by yourselves? You all could have died." said Leaf.

"But this does show how strong your friendship is. Just don't do a lot of reckless things." said Misty.

"At least you're all safe." added Dawn.

Adam looked at his mom. "Mom, are you an only child?" he asked.

She looked at him, confused. "Yes, Adam. You know that." she said.

"When we were at the Temple of Legends, the boss - who's name is Jacob - said that he was a Berlitz. He said that Darien was his son, your twin brother. You two look so much alike, but Darien's eyes are red." Adam said.

"Darien also revealed it to us earlier. He said that Adam reminded him of his daughter and that's why he let us go the first time that we met him. He has a daughter named Brittany." Michelle said.

As the children spoke, Johanna looked shocked and horrified. The man that she once loved was this evil? He didn't care about her at all? He was just using her? Her son was alive and she had a granddaughter?

"What happened to Darien and Brittany?"

"They're being held in custody."

"A brother?" Dawn said, shocked. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She looked at her mom and saw her mom's shocked face and she knew that it was true. She did have a brother and her father...

"Mom, is this true?" she asked, wanting to make sure.

Johanna looked at her. "It is...it's all true." she said.

Dawn couldn't believe it. "Why...why did you hide this from me my whole life? When I was younger, I asked where dad was and you said that he died, mom! Why did you lie and keep that I had a brother from me?"

Johanna remained quiet.

"Were they so horrible...that you had to keep it from me?"

"No...your father left one night when you were babies and took your brother with him. I was heartbroken. I didn't want you to grow up worrying and wondering where they were and if they were alive, because I didn't know. I didn't want you to have that kind of burden to live with."

After a minute, Dawn decided to make a confession, too. "Ash, I have to come clean. I need to tell you something." Dawn said. She had to tell him what had happened while he was missing. Everything that had happened with Kenny.

"It was still early on while you were missing. I got a call...from Kenny. He called saying that you were dead and that Adam needed a father and I deserved better. He didn't think Adam should grow up without a father. He told me that he still loved me and wanted me to give him another chance. He said that we could be a family together."

"He did what?!" Ash cried, angered.

Dawn placed her hand over his. "I told him that I would never love him. I said that I was Dawn Ketchum and that you were still out there somewhere. I couldn't love anyone but you, because my heart belongs to you and you alone." Dawn said.

Ash nodded his head, starting to calm down, but he couldn't believe that Kenny would try to do that to Dawn. How dare he?! "I'm gonna kill that son of a Houndour for what he's done the next time that I see him." Ash said angrily.

* * *

><p>Later that night...<p>

"Pokemon Master, Ash Ketchum, has returned. The tournament that was to be held to determine a new Pokemon Master has been canceled. The Pokemon League will hold a press conference with Ash to reveal why he vanished later."

Paul glared at his TV. He threw the remote after he turned the TV off. He scoffed.

"The pathetic excuse for Pokemon Master has returned. Oh, I'll still find a way to become Pokemon Master. That, I promise you, Ash!" he declared.

* * *

><p>Kenny sighed and turned the TV off. Any chance that he had to get Dawn back was gone now. He looked at the TV. How could Ash be back now after eight months?<p>

His sadness then turned to anger. After using Ash's disappearance to get another chance at winning Dawn back, he realized that it was all for nothing!

"Well, if I can't have her, then neither can Ash!" he cried.

**Author's Note: Sorry for such a long wait. But as you can see, this is our longest chapter yet!**

**So Ash is now reunited with his friends, family, and Pokemon. They also learn about what happened to him and to Team Rocket. But not everyone is happy that Ash has returned. Paul and Kenny are angry and are determined to get back at Ash!**

**The Pokemon League and Grand Festival are coming soon. How will Adam, Jason, and Michelle fare in their competitions? What lengths will Paul and Kenny go to to get what they want?**

**Find out as the story continues!**


	51. Preparations, Trades, and Reunions

I hugged Leaf goodbye and stepped over to the side to be out of the way. After spending basically the whole day together, it was time for everyone to leave. My mom and Misty hugged goodbye.

"Mom, where are we going to stay tonight?" Michelle asked.

Where WERE they going to stay? Everyone except for them lived here in Pallet Town. It was too late for them to go back to Cerulean City.

"Don't worry, dear. I've been staying with Dawn while Ash was away. I can leave and go to Delia's house to sleep. You can stay here in the guest room. And Misty, there is a guest room at Gary's house." my grandma Johanna said.

"Okay, you don't mind?" Misty asked, looking at Gary and Leaf.

"No, of course not, Misty. You're welcome anytime." Leaf said.

Misty hugged Michelle goodbye and told her to be good before she left with Jason and his family. Johanna came back downstairs with her suitcase and she and Delia left.

My mom walked over and hugged me, kissing my head. "Goodnight, sweetie. I love you." she said.

"Love you, mom. 'Night." I said.

My dad hugged me. "'Night, Adam. Love you." he said.

"Love you too, dad." I said.

"Goodnight, Michelle." my parents said as they headed to their bedroom.

Michelle followed me up the stairs and I walked her to the guest room.

"Here's the guest room and the bathroom is the middle door." I said.

"Thank you. 'Night, Adam."

"'Night, Michelle."

* * *

><p>The next morning, my dad walked into the kitchen, adjusting his jacket.<p>

"Where are you going?" I asked as I put my plate in the sink.

"I'm leaving for the day. The Elite Four contacted me, asking that I come to see them. We're going to hold a press conference to show that I'm back and to let everyone know where I've been and what's happened." he said.

"What time will you be home?" my mom asked.

"I'll be gone all day, but I'll be home before supper." he replied.

I saw my mom's eyes flash with fear. "No...you can't go." she said softly. I knew that she was thinking back to what had happened on the day that my dad had gone missing. He had said those exact words and didn't come back.

He walked over to my mom and tilted her head and looked into her eyes, grabbing her left hand. "There's no need to worry. Team Rocket's gone and just to make sure, the Elite Four will be coming here to escort me to the conference as a precaution."

My mom relaxed slightly but she was still uneasy about this. "Be careful, Ash."

He smiled and kissed her. "I always am." he said reassuringly.

Michelle walked into the kitchen with her mom following her.

"I'm heading back to Cerulean City. The gym can't stay closed for long. The Pokemon League is coming quickly and lots of people will want their badges before it's too late." Misty said.

Misty then looked at Michelle. "Are you coming back with me?" she asked.

Michelle looked up at her mom. "I want to stay. I really like it here in Pallet Town. I also need to train for the Grand Festival, which is next month, and I was hoping that Dawn could help me prepare for it and teach me some new combinations."

She turned and looked at my mom. "Can I stay here with you until the Grand Festival?" she asked.

She smiled, "Yes, Michelle. You're always welcome to stay and I would love to help you prepare for the Grand Festival."

Michelle smiled widely. "Thank you so much!" she cried, bowing slightly.

Michelle looked really excited. I would be too if I was her, her idol was going to help her train. That was a dream come true for her.

Misty hugged Michelle goodbye. "I'll be watching the Grand Festival on TV." Misty said.

"I promise that I'll make you proud of me."

"I'll always be proud of you, sweetie. No matter what happens."

Misty released her and stood up. She hugged me goodbye and then hugged my mom.

"Bye, and thank you for letting her stay here."

"It's no problem, Misty."

Lastly, Misty hugged my dad and then left. Shortly after Misty left, the doorbell rang.

"That's the Elite Four." my dad said.

My mom kissed him goodbye.

"Love you," he said.

"Love you, too."

As the door closed, my mom faced me and Michelle.

"What are you two going to do today?" she asked.

"I'm going over to the lab. Jason and I are going to practice for the Pokemon League." I said.

"I'm going to look around Pallet Town, since I haven't seen everything there is to see." Michelle replied.

* * *

><p>Jason and I were in the field behind the lab where the Pokemon stayed. The good thing was that the field was big enough for us to practice battling and not disturb the Pokemon that lived there.<p>

"Dodge, Machoke!" I cried. Machoke successfully dodged the attack.

"Rollout!" Jason cried once Machoke landed.

"No!" I cried, since Graveler was behind Machoke. Machoke was struck from behind and fell.

I looked at Jason and he nodded his head. "Great job, take a rest." he said, returning Graveler.

"Take a rest, Machoke." I said, returning Machoke.

For some reason, while we were practicing, I just didn't feel like my usual self when I battled with Machoke. My heart wasn't fully in the battle. My mind was, but my heart wasn't, which was strange.

"You okay?" Jason asked.

"Yeah, I guess. Why?" I questioned.

"You didn't seem like yourself. You weren't distracted, just...I don't know. It was like you weren't giving it your all, like you usually do." He then let out a quick chuckle. "And like your dad does."

Now that I thought about it, Jason didn't act like his usual self, either. He kept calling the same combinations.

Why were we both acting like this?

"Hey, it's lunchtime, boys. Come back to the lab and eat. Take a break," Gary called, walking up to us.

It was already lunchtime? Wow, time sure did fly while I was busy training my Pokemon. We walked into the lab and saw a few lab assistants feeding the Pokemon as we passed.

We walked into the break area and sat down on the couches. I saw Leaf standing at the counter. Jason looked surprised to see his mom there. I knew that Leaf would sometimes come to the lab with lunch for Gary if he was too busy to go home for lunch.

"Here you go," she said, handing Jason and I a plate. She sat down next to Gary, handing him a plate and balancing her own plate on her lap.

"Thanks, Leaf." Gary said.

"Yeah, thanks, mom." Jason said.

"Thank you," I said.

"No problem. You've all been busy today and I knew that you weren't going to stop to eat, so I had to step in." she said, smiling.

We ate in a comfortable silence. Leaf threw her paper plate away after finishing her lunch and started cleaning up.

"Are you two going to keep training today?" Gary asked.

Jason and I glanced at one another. A frown was on his face and I felt a frown on my face, too.

"Actually, we need to talk to you, dad." Jason said.

"We were practicing with Machoke and Graveler and things just didn't feel right. I've only used Machoke once in a gym battle, which was my last gym battle, and I don't use him a lot in regular battles. We just can't click together as trainer and Pokemon." I explained.

"I'm the opposite. I've used Graveler in a lot of gym battles, but I've run out of ideas for new battle techniques. I've taught Graveler all that I can think of. There's nothing left to teach and nothing more that he can improve upon, but I know that he's still capable of more." Jason said.

Gary was quiet for a few minutes, going over what we had just told him.

"I know what you can do. All you have to do is trade your Pokemon." he said.

"Trade our Pokemon?"

"Yes. Judging by what you told me, Adam, Machoke isn't a good match for your battling style. And Jason, Graveler has learned everything that he can from you and could learn a lot more from someone else. Helping your Pokemon grow and strengthen and reach their full potential is the main thing to keep in mind as a trainer. Sometimes you're not the one who can help your Pokemon achieve that level, but someone else can. You can, however, be a stepping stone on the path of your Pokemon's growth."

I didn't exactly want to do this because it was strange, but it was the best thing for Machoke.

"Okay..." Jason said. He found it strange, too.

"Gary's right. Your Pokemon will learn so much more and you will be able to help them become the best that they can be." my mom said.

Looking back behind the couch, I saw my mom. She had walked into the lab and was standing by the door, listening to our conversation.

"Remember, Adam? Your dad and I traded Pokemon when we were traveling together in Sinnoh. I had Buizel and he had Aipom. Buizel didn't like contests and wanted to battle. Aipom didn't like battles and wanted to be in contests. That trade helped us both on our path to become Pokemon Master and Top Coordinator. Your Pokemon will always be with you in your heart and in your memories, even if they aren't physically with you anymore."

We got up and walked to the machine.

"Just put your Pokeballs there." Gary said.

I placed my Pokeball on one side and Jason did the same. We pulled the lever and our Pokeballs disappeared and reappeared a few seconds later. We grabbed our new Pokeballs and walked out of the lab.

"Come on out!" we called.

We were expecting to see Machoke and Graveler but when the light faded, two new Pokemon appeared! Machamp and Golem.

"Oh yeah, I forgot. They evolve when traded." Jason said as he removed his Pokedex.

"Machamp, the Superpower Pokemon and the evolved form of Machoke. Its four muscled arms slam foes with powerful punches and chops at blinding speed."

I pointed my Pokedex towards Golem.

"Golem, the Megaton Pokemon and the evolved form of Graveler. Once a year, it sheds its bedrock shell and grows even larger. This shell is strong enough to withstand dynamite blasts."

"Welcome to the team, Machamp." Jason said.

"Welcome to the team." I said to Golem.

* * *

><p>It had now been a month since my dad had been found and since everyone came to know that he was back. I pulled my bag onto my back and waited outside. Today, we were leaving to head to the Grand Festival, which was being held at the Indigo Plateau. Over the past month, my mom had taught Michelle some new combos to use while she stayed with us and it was great to have Michelle around all the time.<p>

Meanwhile, Jason and I had adapted to Machamp and Golem really well. Both us and our Pokemon had benefited from the trade.

Jason hugged his parents goodbye since they and my grandma Delia were staying here. My parents and grandma Johanna were coming to watch Michelle participate in the Grand Festival. We were all ready to leave, except my dad wasn't there. I could tell that my mom was nervous and worried since he wasn't here and we were ready to go.

"Hey!"

Looking up, Charizard was in the air coming towards the ground. My dad hopped off of Charizard and I saw a flash of blue. He wasn't alone. He walked towards us and a little blue-haired girl was hiding behind his leg.

"Don't be afraid." he said softly.

Slowly, the little girl walked out from behind his legs. It couldn't be...could it? My dad knelt down and pointed towards my mom and her mom who were standing by each other.

"That's your aunt Dawn and grandma Johanna." he said.

He then looked up at us. "Everyone, this is Brittany. Dawn, meet our niece, and Johanna, meet your granddaughter."

It was Brittany, Darien's daughter. How was she here? And why? Wasn't she in custody with her father? I guess my dad was living up to the taking care of her for now. I heard a few murmurs from everyone wondering why she was here and how.

I looked over at my grandma and she looked shocked at seeing Brittany. Up until now, all that my grandma had had was me. Brittany was her second grandchild, but her first granddaughter. I heard her whisper to herself, saying that Brittany looked almost exactly the same as my mom when she was young.

My mom knelt down. "Hi," she said, smiling warmly at Brittany. My mom was so kind and accepting of everyone that she met, even if they'd just met.

Brittany stared at my mom for a minute, not moving. To my surprise and everyone else's, Brittany suddenly ran happily to my mom, hugging her and losing her nervousness.

"I told Brittany how kind and loving Dawn is. Even if you've never met her, she just gives off a vibe of kindness and you can't help but feel happy around her." my dad explained.

Then grandma knelt down and hugged Brittany too, but it was noticeable that Brittany was reverting into her shy state again. It was going to take time for her to get used to us and be comfortable around us.

"Why is she here?" my mom asked.

"I convinced the police and Elite Four to release Brittany from their custody. I wanted her to get to know her family. Darien also agreed to let her go and be under our care while he stays in custody for a few more months." my dad explained.

"Don't worry, Brittany. We'll take care of you. You can trust us." my mom said kindly as she smoothed down Brittany's long blue hair.

Brittany smiled from my mom's touch and said, "I know. My daddy told me that I could trust you."

It looked like my mom and cousin were going to get along just fine. And in time, she would hopefully get along with the rest of us, too.

Brittany then looked around and saw that everyone was gathered outside for some reason.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"We're going to the Grand Festival." my mom answered.

"What's that?"

"It's a competition where Pokemon coordinators compete to become Top Coordinator. Coordinators perform with their Pokemon, putting on a performance, which is the appeals, and then they go into a battle round. The Grand Festival is the biggest contest ever. Michelle is going to compete." she said, pointing at Michelle.

"I've never seen a contest before."

"You'll see what it is when we get there. You'll love it, I promise."

Brittany was going to get to know her family that had been missing for her whole life. She was so naïve to things outside of the ship that she had been living on. She didn't know much of anything, so maybe this was a way for our families to be fixed.

**Author's Note: After trading Pokemon, Adam and Jason have gained two new partners for their teams. Things have gotten back to normal around Pallet Town now that Ash is back.**

**And now, after training with Dawn, Michelle is off to the Grand Festival with her friends. But it seems that one extra person is going with them! Brittany, Adam's cousin, who will be staying with them until her father, Darien, is released from custody.**

**How will Brittany adapt to her new family? How accepting will Ash, Dawn, and the others be? How will Michelle fare in her first Grand Festival?**

**Find out as the Grand Festival begins in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	52. Off to the Grand Festival

It had been a few days since we left home. Soon we would be at the Indigo Plateau before any of us knew it. Thankfully, Brittany was acting a little more at ease with us. She was carrying a backpack that looked similar to my mom's when she was traveling. We had to stop and get her some things while in Viridian City. She didn't have much since she had been kept in custody.

I listened as my parents and grandma shared stories to Brittany that I was familiar with, having already heard them myself. She seemed interested in what they were telling her, occasionally asking a question or two. Maybe this would help us in gaining a connection with her.

I had heard of my mom telling about how she had battled many people and she had become friends with almost all of them. My dad had told of a few of his gym battles and his story of how he became the Champion. My grandma Johanna even told of her time in her first Grand Festival. Brittany looked so happy and listened to every word that was spoken, she seemed to be savoring the stories.

"I've seen a lot of battles. My dad would practice a lot and I would see them." Brittany said softly.

My mom then started to tell of the Wallace Cup. As she spoke, she made some motions to show how she ran onto the stage. Brittany looked interested and her eyes sparkled with entertainment. She seemed very interested in contests.

"She was a tough opponent to beat. Thanks to my partner, Piplup, and the move Whirlpool, I was able to win the Wallace Cup." my mom said, finishing her story.

"Contests sound like a lot of fun. They seem so different from what daddy does in battles. I still want to see one for myself so that I can see and fully know what a contest is and what a...coordinator is." said my cousin.

My mom smiled and looked at Brittany, who was smiling back. She had been very talkative to my parents and grandma while Jason, Michelle, and myself, walked in the back, listening.

"How much farther is it?" Brittany asked, looking and sounding tired.

"It's just a few more hours. We'll be there before you know it." my dad replied.

I caught my mom looking a little unsure for a moment. "Brittany...what is your story? What were you doing all these years away from us?" my mom asked. "You don't have to tell us if you aren't comfortable telling us."

Brittany paused and looked around. Her eyes were wide and uncertain, but after a minute, she nodded her head. "I'll tell you." she said softly.

A small silence passed over us as Brittany tried to figure out what to say.

"For as long as I can remember, I've lived on a ship. My daddy's ship. He never allowed me outside of it because he said that there were bad people and things outside. I sometimes walked out, being careful, and followed him. I got to meet some of the people he was with. He made sure that none of them spoke of me, but they were all nice to me. Daddy never let me out, no matter how much I begged. He said it was for my own safety." Brittany explained.

Even though Darien was evil, he had kept her safe and away from Team Rocket. He didn't want her to be around what he was around. He didn't want her to grow up like the way that he had.

"He was strict with me most of the time and left me alone too, but he always talked to me whenever I wanted to talk or had a question. And he's my daddy, I love him. Even though he didn't show me that he loved me, I know that he did. He had a different way of showing his love for me...but..."

She paused and looked ahead of her. "About a month or two ago, he changed."

My eyes widened and I looked over at Jason and Michelle, their eyes also widened slightly. That was around the time that we ran into Darien and when he didn't capture us.

"He started to stay in the room with me more and was being really, really nice to me. He looked sad and worried when he was with me all those times, though. I didn't know why he was sad and worried, so I asked him. He would never tell me, he would just change the subject or leave the room, saying that he had something to do.

"I kept asking and then one day...he told me. He told me that he was going away and that he might not see me for a long time. I was sad and scared because I...I don't have a mommy and I didn't want to lose my daddy, too." Her voice had cracked just the slightest as she remembered.

"But nothing bad happened, though. The police found me and took me back to daddy and then I met Ash, Adam, Jason, and Michelle. Then we were taken somewhere by the police. They treated us nicely. While we were there, I asked daddy why they took us away. We didn't do anything...but I was wrong. He told me that he had done some bad things and he would tell me later on.

"He told me a lot of secrets and of all the bad things that he had done. He told me that he was a Pokemon Hunter who stole Pokemon from people for money or just for fun. He told me about the deal that he had with Team Rocket and why I was never allowed out of the ship. He didn't want anyone to know about me. He told me that there was someone really bad and mean that would rip me away from him if they ever found out about me. So he had to keep me safe. He said that he was sorry for keeping all of this from me and sorry that he did all those bad things. He was crying and I didn't want him to be sad. He wanted me to forgive him for the pain that he caused me, but he hadn't caused me any pain. I hugged him and told him that he was a good person now and that I forgave him. He then told me about you guys and how I could trust you."

I was shocked. She was only eight and she had gone through all of this? I hoped that the police released Darien so that Brittany could have him back in her life.

"Brittany, you're very brave, being only eight years old and being able to forgive him for everything that he did after hearing all about it." my dad said.

My mom looked at her. "What about your mom?" she asked.

"I've never met her. I don't know who she is or what she looks like. Daddy doesn't know where she is, either." Brittany said sadly.

I saw Michelle frown out of the corner of my eye. She and Brittany both had something in common, neither of them knew who one of their parents were. But while Darien didn't know, Misty knew who Michelle's father was. Maybe one day, they would find their mom and dad.

"Look up ahead." my dad said, breaking my thoughts.

We were at the Indigo Plateau. Looking around, it was full of people and Pokemon. Some were practicing, some talking, while others were looking at the booths that were selling snacks and souvenirs.

"Oh...wow..." Brittany said, turning her head in every direction and looking around. She even stood on her toes, trying to see farther.

"Come on," my mom said.

Brittany reached up and took her hand. As we walked, I saw my mom pointing things out to Brittany. Michelle was scanning around the area and I was, too.

I saw Michelle snap her head back and she smiled. "Amber!" she called.

I looked to where Michelle was looking at saw Amber. She was standing towards the edge of a field and turned, hearing her name. After looking for a moment, she saw Michelle and ran over.

"Michelle!" she cried as she stopped running and smiled at her. "After beating you on Cinnabar Island and with only one contest left, I wasn't sure if you were going to make it. I'm so happy that you did, though."

"Yeah, I am too. It's my first Grand Festival."

"Mine, too!"

Amber quickly glanced around and her eyes widened greatly. She ran over to my mom and startled Brittany, causing her to hide.

"You...You're Dawn Ketchum." she said, shocked.

My mom smiled and nodded. "Yes..."

"You're my idol! It's great to meet you! I'm Amber."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Amber. I'm always glad to meet a coordinator that I've inspired. I wish you the best of luck." my mom said.

Amber looked so happy that she looked like she might explode!

"Great to see that you're entering, Michelle. This is my fifth Grand Festival, I'm hoping to win this time." said a familiar voice.

Turning around, we saw Blair approaching.

"Hey, Blair!" Michelle greeted happily.

"I'm Amber," Amber greeted, this being the first time that they had met.

"I'm Blair, nice to meet you." Blair said.

I quickly remembered that Blair had two Pokemon that my mom had and I had seen them perform in contests. Blair had a Buneary and a Pachirisu just like my mom.

"Hey Blair, you have two Pokemon my mom has. Buneary and Pachirisu." I said.

"Really? Well, my mom's best friend from years ago was a coordinator who had them and that's why I caught them."

My mom looked at Blair. "What? Your mom knows me? Have I met her before?" she asked, confused.

"Of course I know you, Dawn. I hope that you haven't forgotten me after all this time." a voice from behind said with a slight laugh.

My mom turned around and smiled at who she saw. "Zoey!" she cried, hugging her.

Zoey laughed and hugged my mom back. Both of them had huge, happy smiles on their faces. They went way back and hadn't seen each other in years.

Looking at Zoey, I saw that she was older than my mom, in her late thirties. Her hair was a dark orange that was almost grazing her shoulders and it was spiked. She was wearing a purple tee, blue jeans, boots, and sunglasses were on her head. Looking at her, I quickly remembered her. A picture of her and my mom was hung in the hall at home. Zoey didn't really look much different from when she was a teenager, she just looked older.

"I can't believe it! It's been way too long!" my mom cried.

"Yeah, it has! I missed you, Dawn!" Zoey said happily.

Once they released each other from their hugs, Zoey looked around. "Hi, Ash, Johanna." she greeted. "Great to see you in person again after your disappearance, Ash."

"This is our son, Adam, and his friends, Jason Oak and Michelle Waterflower." my mom said.

"I'm Amber,"

"And this is Brittany, my niece."

Looking down, I saw that Brittany looked nervous and scared of the unfamiliar faces. My mom knelt down to her level.

"It's okay, sweetie. These are friends of ours. There's no need to be scared. That's my old friend, Zoey. She's my best friend and a coordinator like me. That's her daughter, Blair, and their friend, Amber."

"Michelle, have you seen Nikki yet? I've been looking for her, but I haven't seen her anywhere. She has five ribbons." Blair said.

"No, I haven't seen her. She probably won't come after what happened to her." Michelle said softly.

"What?"

"What happened to her?"

"While we were traveling, we were with Nikki and her brother. We got ambushed by a Pokemon Hunter and Nikki got captured. He...violated her." Michelle said softly. "She...she's emotionally scarred for life after what he did to her."

I saw anger flare in Zoey's eyes. "How dare someone do that to a child?!" she cried.

Amber looked shocked and sad. Her eyes were wide in shock, but full of sadness.

"Oh my...that's terrible." Blair said softly and sadly.

We stood there for a few minutes, deciding what to do until Zoey asked if we had checked in for the Grand Festival yet.

"No, we haven't."

"Well, come on. That's where we were heading, but Blair saw you guys and wanted to come and say hello." Zoey said and started walking.

We walked up to the front desk of the hotel and the lady looked up. "Hello. Contestants and family?" she asked.

"Yes,"

"Okay, I need the contestants' names and ribbons."

"Amber,"

"Blair,"

"Michelle,"

The lady looked at the screen and scanned the girls' ribbons. "Here we are. Well, lucky for you girls, you're all in the same room. We have family rooms too, so just sort that out amongst yourselves. Good luck in the Grand Festival. Here are your keys and enjoy your stay."

"Thank you,"

After finding where are rooms were, Jason and I chose the room across from where the girls were staying, my grandma and Brittany were in a room on our right, Zoey on our left, and my parents were in the room on the left of the girls' room. Thankfully, Brittany had warmed up to my grandma and was comfortable around her, enough to share a room. We dropped our things off and were standing in the hall.

"Well, I was thinking that I could show Brittany around some more." Dawn said.

"I'll go with you," my grandma said.

"Me too, it'll be great to catch up with you, Dawn." Zoey said.

"Blair, Amber, and I are going to explore. Adam, you and Jason can come with us if you want to." Michelle said.

I glanced over at Jason and he nodded.

"Sure,"

"I think I'll just go and practice with my Pokemon." Ash said. "We'll meet back here before we go out for supper."

**Author's Note: Brittany has gotten to know her family better and they've gotten to know her better too, having heard her story about what her life's been like up to this point. It seems that her father had some good hidden inside him the entire time. Brittany is also showing an interest in contests after hearing about them from her aunt and grandma.**

**Now everyone is at the Grand Festival where Dawn reunites with Zoey, her old friend, who is also Blair's mom. The kids also meet Blair and Amber again but there's no sign of Nikki, who may not show up after her horrible ordeal.**

**Will Nikki show up and compete in the Grand Festival? What will Brittany say when she finally experiences a contest for herself?**

**Find out as the first round of the Grand Festival begins in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	53. Four Friends, Four Rivals!

**PokemonFreak90 - It's Pokemon NG's two year anniversary! Hard to believe that we're still writing this story after all this time! We thank all of you readers and reviewers for sticking with us for this long and we hope that you continue to support us and enjoy our story as much as we've enjoyed writing it.**

**XashXdawnX - Thanks to everyone who reads and supports this story. Glad you all enjoy it.**

**Dawn's POV**

We were walking around, looking at the booths. Brittany had her hand in mine so she wouldn't get lost and just because she wanted to. She kept grabbing my hand whenever we were walking around, especially in crowds. She never wanted to leave my side.

"So how have you been?" I asked, looking at Zoey.

"Pretty good. I've taken to helping Candice at her school. I'm happily married and have two kids." Zoey explained.

"Two kids?"

"Yes, Blair and her brother, Brad. He's about Brittany's age."

"Oh, I didn't know that you had two kids. Is he at home?"

"Yes, he wasn't feeling well so he's home with his dad. I just hope that Blair isn't upset that they didn't come, but they're still supporting her."

"I'm sure she knows that."

"What about you, especially with Ash being missing for so long?"

"Well, it was perfectly fine until the day Ash went missing. I went into a depressed state and I felt this ache inside me every day that he was gone. I kept strong for Adam, knowing that I needed to be, but I know that he knew that I was hurting, just like he was. When he left to begin his journey, I kept myself busy. But at night, I couldn't sleep well. Then I saw that poll where everyone had said that he was dead and that the Elite Four planned to hold a competition to find a new Pokemon Master and that angered me. I'm much better now, though, since Ash is finally back...back and himself again."

Zoey looked at me. "I can't even imagine what that felt like, Dawn. I'm sorry that this happened, but I'm happy that Ash is back."

"I am, too. I don't know what I would have done if..." I trailed.

"Don't think like that. How does it feel with Adam home again?" Zoey asked, changing to a less depressing topic.

"It's strange, since he's been gone for so long, but I'm happy that he's home. I finally know how my mom felt when I was traveling. Having an empty nest isn't fun. I miss seeing him and hearing him every day."

"Wait until he goes off to a different region like Blair did. You'll definitely feel the sadness of missing your kid then."

"Oh, I don't even want to think about that right now." I said. "And you have another kid in the house, at least."

Zoey laughed and looked at a few booths.

Looking around, I spotted a snack booth that had a lot of candy.

"Hey Brittany, do you want some candy or ice cream?" I asked.

"I've never had that before." Brittany said.

I stared at her in shock.

"What? You haven't had ice cream before? Or even chocolate?" my mom asked.

She shook her head.

"Never?" Zoey asked.

"Never." Brittany confirmed.

"Well, you're about to find out what you've been missing." I said as we walked to the snack booth line.

After buying one of everything for her to taste and some snacks for ourselves, we continued on our way.

Brittany held a bag of cotton candy that was blue and looked at it. "It looks like a cloud." she said, looking up at the sky and looking at the clouds.

"It's really good, one of my favorite candies to get from a fair or a big event that has vendors." I said.

She bit into it and her eyes widened. She licked her lips to get the candy that stuck to her mouth. Before she knew it, her cotton candy was gone and her mouth was stained blue.

"That was really good! What was it called again?" she asked.

"Cotton candy,"

She removed a chocolate bar and bit into it. "I'm gonna have to tell daddy to get me some of this!" she cried.

* * *

><p><strong>Michelle's POV<strong>

I couldn't believe my eyes! The stadium where the Grand Festival was taking place was HUGE! I had never seen something this big before.

"Wow..." Amber said.

While Amber was distracted and Blair wasn't paying attention to us, Adam spoke quietly.

"Remember what happened in Team Rocket's base? Antonio said that he had a daughter named Amber. We should see if she's her." he said.

"You're right," Jason said.

"Hey Amber, can we talk to you...privately?" I asked.

She nodded her head and followed us, leaving Blair by herself.

"Amber, can you tell us about your family?" Adam asked, looking at her.

She shifted uncomfortably and Adam's eyes flashed with interest.

"You're hiding something from us." he said.

"My family isn't exactly a 'happy' topic for me to talk about. Why do you even want to know about it?" she asked with an edge to her voice.

"While we were traveling, we met a man who claimed to have a daughter named Amber. He said that she was around your age and we think that it might be you." Jason explained.

Amber's eyes flashed with sadness, but curiosity could be seen. "Fine...I'll tell you what little I know about my family from what my grandma told me."

After a few moments, she started to talk. "My father was from Kanto and met my mom while he was visiting Kalos, where my mom was from. They fell in love and got married, then moved back to Kanto to start a family. My grandma moved with them to be closer to her family and not live so far away."

She frowned and looked around. "They were happy until I was one. My dad apparently had to leave us and he said that he would be gone for a long time and would probably never see us again. And not long after that happened, my mom was killed. We never found out how she died or who did it. And that's how I ended up living with my grandma. She raised me."

Looking at Adam and Jason, we all had the same look in our eyes. Her story was almost identical to what Antonio had told us.

"What was your dad's name?" I asked

"His name was...Antonio."

A nearly identical story!

"Amber, the man we met...his story is almost identical to yours. His name was Antonio and he had a daughter named Amber." Adam said.

"He told us that if we ever found his daughter, then we give her this message: He's alive and safe and he misses you and will always love you and hopes that you achieve your goals in life." I said.

Amber looked at us in shock. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was opened slightly and would close and open as if she was trying to say something. She put her hands over her eyes as she began to cry and her body shook.

She wiped at her face and looked at us. "My dad...he's still alive somewhere out there? And he...he said that about me?"

We nodded.

"Thank you for telling me that. I'm glad that he's still alive and I hope that I see him again someday. Even though I don't remember him, I still love him and miss him, too."

"If it makes you feel any better, I don't know my dad and I'm searching for him." I said.

"Well, I think that we'll both find them...one day."

"Yeah,"

Amber wiped her eyes again and we headed back to where we had left Blair. I quickly noticed that she wasn't alone. Standing beside her was Trevor and Nikki! They came!

"Nikki!" I cried, running over.

She smiled, but I noticed that it didn't quite reach her eyes. I hugged her and she hugged me back.

"I'm glad that you came." I said, pulling away.

"Hey, guys." Trevor said.

We greeted him too, but I had to admit that it was strange. After him being so mean to us for so long, him acting nice would take some time.

"Oh yeah, Amber, this is Nikki and Trevor. Nikki and Trevor, this is Amber."

"Nice to meet you."

"What's happened since we last saw each other?" I asked.

Nikki looked slightly distant as she remembered. "We went back home for a while. While being there, I wasn't sure if I would come here to the Grand Festival. My spirit was broken and I was broken inside and out. But thanks to my parents and Trevor, they talked with me and comforted me, helping me get my courage and spirit back." Nikki explained.

"Well, I'm glad you're here and I know that you'll do great." I said.

"I'm happy you're here too, Nikki. You're going to be great, like always." Blair said.

"Do you have all eight badges?" Adam asked, looking at Trevor.

Trevor looked at him. "Yes, I do."

"We do, too." Jason said.

"Hey...Adam...I'm sorry." Trevor said.

Adam looked at him, confused.

"I'm sorry that I doubted that your dad was alive. I'm sorry that I said he was dead."

"Thanks, Trevor..."

We started walking again, looking around.

"Hey Blair, I just noticed, why don't you look like your mom?" Jason asked.

"Oh, I look more like my dad. He has blonde hair, like me. But my brother looks like my mom." Blair replied.

"Brother?"

"Yeah, I have a little brother. He's eight and he's really excited to start his journey. He can't wait to get his Pokemon and start traveling."

"I didn't know that you had a brother."

"You never asked, so I didn't mention it."

"What's his name?" Nikki asked.

"Brad,"

"Did he come here with your mom?" Jason asked.

Blair shook her head. "No, my mom said that he wasn't feeling well, so he stayed home with my dad. Because Snowpoint City is so cold, it's not uncommon for young kids, who have weaker immune systems, to regularly catch colds."

"Well, they're watching you on TV. You know that, right?" Jason asked.

"Yeah, I know. They may not be here in person, but I know that they're supporting me from home." Blair said.

During the whole time that we walked around, Trevor was talking and not once did he insult us. He wasn't being quiet like he always was. Nikki was acting more like herself too, but at times, you could see that she was still upset about what had happened, but who could blame her?

* * *

><p>I was sitting in front of a mirror, checking over my appearance one more time. My stomach was in knots and my palms were clammy. Today was the day that I had been preparing for and dreaming about since I was a little girl. Today was the start of the Grand Festival. I reached into my bag and removed the bottle of perfume, spraying some on.<p>

"You ready for your first Grand Festival?" Amber asked, stopping by my chair.

I put the cap on the bottle and looked at her. "Yes, are you?"

"Ready as I'll ever be. Did you get that perfume from Erika in Celadon City?"

"Yes, it's the apple scent."

"I have one from her too, except I picked the lavender scent."

"You smell really nice." I commented.

"So do you." she replied.

I stood up and we walked out into the waiting area. I stopped in my tracks. The waiting area was packed with over two hundred coordinators competing!

"Wow...I've never seen so many people."

"Same here," I replied.

Scanning the room, I found Nikki and Blair standing against a wall. We headed over to them and greeted them. As I looked around at everyone, my stomach started getting Butterfrees.

"I'm so nervous. There's so many coordinators here." I said.

"This is going to be really tough." Nikki said, looking around.

"I feel sick, my nerves are making me feel sick. There's so many people." Amber said, frowning.

Blair didn't seem affected by the number of people. Then again, this was her...fifth Grand Festival. "Don't worry about it, just do your best and treat it like any other contest. You'll be fine." Blair said.

Looking up, I saw that Dawn, Zoey, Adam, and Jason had made it into the waiting area and found us.

"Hey, you'll be great, Michelle." Adam said.

"Yeah, you always do great." Jason added.

"Thanks, guys," I said, giving a nervous grin.

"Don't be scared, you'll do great." they said, hugging me. I hugged them back and nodded my head at them when I pulled back.

"I remember when I was in my first Grand Festival. I know how you're feeling." Dawn said, talking to me and Amber. "Just do your best and have fun. You've made it this far, so don't let your nerves ruin your chances. I wish you both the best of luck and I can't wait to see what you have in store for us. No need to worry."

"Like I always thought when I was in this position, treat it like any other contest. It's just like any other contest and you'll both do great. I wish you both good luck and remember to have fun." Zoey said to Blair and Nikki.

With one last goodbye and good luck, they left to get their seats before the Grand Festival started.

**Normal POV**

Jillian walked out onto the stage. "Good afternoon! It's time for the Kanto Pokemon Grand Festival, where all contestants who have earned five ribbons compete for the ultimate prize: The Ribbon Cup! The Grand Festival will be a double performance and every coordinator is competing to win the title of Top Coordinator! Now to meet our wonderful judges!"

"First is Shawn Contesta!"

"I'm looking forward to see what every Coordinator has planned."

"Next, we have the President of the Pokemon Fan Club, Mr. Tatsu!"

"The biggest day for coordinators and Pokemon!"

"And our very own Nurse Joy!"

"I wish you all the best of luck and I'm excited to see the performances."

"And finally, we have our very special guest judge! She's no stranger to the Grand Festival. She competed here on this very stage years ago, wowed the audience with her Pokemons' moves and performances, and won the Ribbon Cup, earning the well-deserved title of Top Coordinator! Please welcome from Pewter City right here in Kanto...Solidad!"

Cheers erupted from the crowd as Solidad walked onto the stage, waving. She was now in her forties. Her pink hair was still long and her bangs were barely falling into her blue eyes. She wore a light orange jacket with a red knee length skirt and red boots. A red belt was around her waist, keeping her jacket closed and she wore some red gloves.

"I'm so glad to be here back here on this stage. But this time, it's from a new perspective. Coordinators, good luck to you all, and to your Pokemon, too. I'm excited to see what you have planned." Solidad said to everyone.

"And I'm your host, Jillian! The Kanto Pokemon Grand Festival will now begin!" Jillian cried.

"First up, we have Blair!"

As Michelle looked at the screen from backstage, she was glad that she wasn't Blair. She would never be able to go first at this contest.

Blair ran out onto the stage and jumped over the stairs, twirling, and tossing her Pokeballs into the air.

"Beautifly, Roselia, showtime!" Blair cried. Both Pokemon appeared, surrounded by confetti.

"Roselia, use Petal Dance! Beautifly, use Silver Wind!" Blair cried. The petals swirled and Silver Wind hit the petals, merging the two moves together into a beautiful breeze of flower petals.

"Now finish it with Solar Beam, Roselia! Beautifly, use Psychic!" The petals were frozen in the air by Psychic and the Solar Beam hit the petals, causing sparkles to rain down as they burst.

In the audience, Brittany looked at the sparkles with a smile on her face, her eyes shining.

"Incredible!" Jillian cried.

Beautifly landed on Blair's head and Roselia and Blair did a bow.

"A wonderful way to show off the moves and power." Shawn said.

"Wonderful!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"Excellent timing and precision." Nurse Joy said.

"An excellent combination to show off both of your Pokemons' skills and power." Solidad said.

Blair walked back through the curtains.

The contest continued on and it was soon Amber's turn.

"Wish me luck?" Amber said, standing up.

"Good luck," said Michelle.

"Next up is...Amber!" Jillian cried.

Amber ran out and jumped over the stairs, crossing her arms and tossing her Pokeballs.

"Take the stage, Psyduck and Ponyta!" Amber cried. The two Pokemon appeared, surrounded by hearts.

"Ponyta, use Flamethrower! Psyduck, use Water Gun! To the sky!" Both moves shot into the air.

"Ponyta, use Fire Spin at the water! Psyduck, use Water Pulse at the fire!" The two moves swirled around each other in the air.

"Outstanding!" Jillian cried.

"Now use Hidden Power!" Both Pokemon used Hidden Power, hitting the now twisters, causing rain drops and embers and sparkles to fall.

Brittany stared wide-eyed at the result and a big smile was on her face.

"A great display of fire and water." Shawn said.

"Outstanding!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"A lovely performance and your Pokemon showed their skills wonderfully." Nurse Joy said.

"A great way to show how a Fire and Water type can work together instead of against each other." Solidad said.

Amber curtsied and walked backstage.

As Michelle made her way to the curtains, she looked at her Pokeballs. She took a breath and released it, waiting for her name to be called.

"Next up is...Michelle!" Jillian cried.

"Yay!" Brittany cried.

Michelle ran out onto the stage, jumping over the stairs, twirling, and tossing her Pokeballs.

"Jolteon, Gastly, spotlight!" she cried. A heart appeared and it became dark, and then covered by electricity, causing it to break and causing sparkles to fall.

"A wonderful entrance!" Jillian cried.

"That was so cool!" Brittany cried.

"Gastly, use Shadow Ball into the air! Jolteon, Quick Attack and Thunder Fang!" A dark purple ball was shot into the air and Jolteon ran forward and jumped into the air, her jaws sparking with electricity. Jolteon bit the Shadow Ball and caused it to break, making dark electric sparks fall.

"Now use Discharge! Gastly, use Psychic!" Jolteon released the electricity and was suddenly outlined in blue, the sparks still active.

Brittany stared at the stage with wide eyes.

"Now let's finish this, guys! Gastly, use Shadow Ball! Jolteon, use Pin Missile!" Jolteon flipped after being released from the Psychic and still having Discharge, the Pin Missile had sparks with it. It was like Jolteon was rapidly shooting out hundreds of tiny lightning bolts! Gastly fired the Shadow Ball and the moves hit one another, causing sparks and sparkles to fall. Jolteon landed on the ground.

"What a wonderful performance!" Jillian cried.

"A unique performance." Shawn said.

"Absolutely wonderful!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"A shocking and powerful performance to watch." Nurse Joy said.

"This was very exciting to watch and showed just how much time was spent training to make your Pokemon shine. Wonderful!" Solidad said.

Michelle curtsied and went backstage.

"Next up is...Nikki!" Jillian cried.

Nikki ran onto the stage and spun, tossing her Pokeballs.

"Vulpix, Gastly, take the stage!" she cried. A ribbon was shown and as it faded, Vulpix and Gastly were seen.

"Vulpix, use Will-O-Wisp! Gastly, Shadow Ball!" The two moves merged together to create a dark flame.

"Vulpix, use Safeguard!" Since the Will-O-Wisp and Shadow Ball combo was still around Vulpix when its body started to glow, it created a very pretty sight.

"That's so pretty!" Brittany cried.

"Now that's a sight to see, folks!" Jillian cried.

"Gastly, use Double Team!" Gastly surrounded Vulpix.

"Shadow Ball, Gastly! Vulpix, use Flamethrower!" As various Shadow Balls headed towards Vulpix, Vulpix started using Flamethrower and started spinning. The moves hit one another and as the fire hit the Shadow Balls, the flame became dark for a few moments. It was like Vulpix was breathing a stream of dark fire!

"A great performance!" Jillian cried.

"A wonderful combination." Shawn said.

"Marvelous!" Mr. Tatsu cried.

"It was a wonderful performance to watch." Nurse Joy said.

"A wonderful way to show how Fire and Ghost types can work together. Well done," Solidad said.

Nikki curtsied and went backstage.

* * *

><p>After all of the coordinators had performed, the girls sat waiting backstage as the results were being decided. Over two hundred coordinators and only sixty-four would be moving on.<p>

"Great job, Michelle. The training with my mom really paid off. You've improved a lot!" Adam said.

"Thanks, Adam. And thank you for helping, Dawn."

"You're welcome, Michelle. You did great, you all did." Dawn said.

"It was so cool watching all of the performances! I've never seen anything like it." Brittany said, still in awe of everything she had seen.

Dawn saw how enthralled Brittany was now and during the performances. She seemed to be really interested in contests and maybe she would choose to be a coordinator when she got older.

It took a while, but the results were finally posted. "And the results are in. The sixty-four coordinators who will be moving on to the battle round will be..." Jillian said as the pictures started showing up on the screen.

Blair's picture was shown, then shortly afterwards was Amber's, and then Nikki's. As the pictures started to get towards the end, Michelle had yet to see her picture. She bit her lip, and then finally, the picture second to last was her. She let out a sigh of relief.

"You all made it. Well, that was just the easy part, girls." Dawn said.

"Because starting tomorrow, the real challenge begins." Zoey said.

"Don't worry, we're ready." said the girls.

**Author's Note: The Grand Festival has begun. Amongst all of the spectacular performances, Michelle, Amber, Blair, and Nikki were able to pull through and make it to the next stage.**

**Watching contests for the first time, Brittany was instantly hooked and displayed a strong interest in them. Maybe she'll follow in the footsteps of her aunt and grandma and become a coordinator someday, too?**

**The kids also learn that Blair has a little brother named Brad, who's Brittany's age. And Nikki found it in herself to overcome her fears and show up to compete at the festival!  
><strong>

**Also, Adam and the others finally break the news to Amber about Antonio and discover that he is indeed her father! Amber has finally learned that her family is not entirely gone after all!**

**What challenges await Michelle and her friends in the next round of the Grand Festival? Who will emerge victorious and win the Ribbon Cup?**

**Find out as the Grand Festival continues in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	54. Quest for the Ribbon Cup

**Brittany's POV**

I was sitting on the bed; dressed in my pink pajamas and ready for bed, but I was too excited to sleep. Grandma was sitting next to me, listening to me talk about the Grand Festival.

"Today was so...different! I had never seen a contest before, but now I love them and everything was so amazing!" I cried.

My grandma smiled at me.

"I really liked the Jigglypuff and Poliwag duo. Jigglypuff used Hyper Voice and made the bubbles pop! It was so pretty." I said, remembering one of my favorite appeals besides Michelle's and her friends'.

"Then there was the performance where Dig was used and the Flamethrower came out of the holes, making fountains of fire!" I smiled, remembering the contest.

"I'm glad that you had a great time and I'm happy for you." said grandma.

"It's so cool seeing a contest. I really enjoyed today."

"Well, you're in for more surprises tomorrow when the Grand Festival continues."

There was a knock on the door and grandma got up to answer it. When the door was opened, I saw that it was Michelle, who was in her pajamas, which were blue.

"Hey, Brittany. Do you want to come to my room for a little while? You can hang out with me and my friends." Michelle asked.

I looked at grandma, unsure of what to do. She smiled and nodded her head.

"Go ahead, it'll be fun. But don't stay too late and be back in time for bed."

I hopped off of the bed and walked over to Michelle and we went to her room. She walked in and I followed her, seeing the other three girls sitting on the floor. Amber was in orange pajamas, Blair was in green, and Nikki was in white.

Michelle joined the others on the floor and I sat beside her and Nikki.

"Hey, Brittany. Glad that you could join us." Blair said.

"We were going to watch some show, but then we saw this. It's a rebroadcast of the Grand Festival when Solidad won the Ribbon Cup here." Amber said.

I was going to get to see more contest-related things? I was more than okay with that!

The commercial that was playing ended and the contest started. I watched as it showed how Solidad won. As the re-run of the contest ended, the screen changed to show Solidad and Jillian sitting and talking.

"So Solidad, you just watched yourself winning the Ribbon Cup. How did it feel, winning the Grand Festival on this very same stage all those years ago?" Jillian asked.

Solidad was quiet for a few minutes, thinking. "Well, when I won, it was great but it wasn't easy. It felt like I had completed my goal and became a Top Coordinator, but I still continued to travel and enter contests afterwards to see just how much further I could go. I have to say, no matter what, I still get a thrill when competing in a contest."

"And how does competing in contests compare to judging them?"

Solidad laughed. "I have to say that it's a little strange being on the other side. I mean, when I was competing in contests, I was always analyzing my rivals to come up with ideas and strategies. Having to judge so many coordinators is really fun and a very different experience. I loved seeing all of the appeals and everyone did great. I know that tomorrow will bring a lot more excitement."

"Well, there you have it, folks. Solidad's view on judging and competing, spoken by the Top Coordinator herself. See you all again!"

A commercial came on and Amber switched the television off.

"So Brittany, what did you think of today?" Michelle asked.

I looked at her and smiled. "It was amazing! You all did great!" I cried.

"You seem like you enjoy contests a lot." Blair said.

"I do, they're really exciting to watch." I then thought of something. "How did you all meet...well, become friends?" I asked curiously.

"I met Michelle, Adam, and Jason outside of Cerulean City, near Cerulean Cape. They walked over to where my brother and I were training. I became friends with Michelle over a few contests. I met Amber and Blair through contests, too." Nikki explained.

"I met Michelle and the boys when the Butterfrees in Kanto gathered to find mates. My Butterfree and Jason's Butterfree loved each other and then I met them. Thanks to my contests, I got to be better friends with Michelle." said Blair.

"I met Michelle after she registered for the Cinnabar Contest. We became friends through training for the contest together." Amber said.

"It's great that you guys are friends." I said.

"And now you're our friend too, Brittany." said Michelle.

"Really?" I said, surprised. "I've never had any friends before."

"Well, now you have four of them." said Nikki, hugging me.

The other girls surrounded me in a group hug, too. It felt really nice.

Ever since I was allowed to be with my family, my life had become a million times better! I now had a family that loved me and friends who cared about me. Those were two things that I never thought that I would ever have in my life. I also didn't feel shy or scared of people anymore.

The only thing that was missing now was my daddy. I hoped that he would be released from custody soon.

* * *

><p><strong>Michelle's POV<strong>

It was now the day of the battle rounds. I stood backstage with Amber, Blair, and Nikki. We were all waiting to see who we were going to be facing.

_I hope that I don't have to battle any of my friends right now. Not this early in the Grand Festival. _I thought to myself.

I watched as the pictures were shuffled randomly and once the pictures popped up, I let out a sigh of relief. I wouldn't have to face any of my friends in the first round.

As the battle round began, to determine who would make it into the top thirty-two, I waited. I was close to the end of the round, so I had to wait a while, along with Nikki.

... ...

"Pidgeot, use Aerial Ace, and Jigglypuff, jump and use Hyper Voice!" Amber cried.

Amber was currently battling against a girl, facing off against a Bellsprout and Bellossom.

Pidgeot landed the Aerial Ace on both Bellsprout and Bellossom before they could dodge in time. Amber had speed and a type advantage in this battle.

"Now, Jigglypuff! Use Sing!"

Right as the attack hit, the time ran out. Amber had won.

"Amber wins!"

... ...

"Dodge! Pachirisu, use Discharge, and Buneary, use Ice Beam!" Blair cried.

"Counter the Ice Beam with Flamethrower, Ponyta! And Pichu, use Thunderbolt!"

Blair was barely managing to hold on to the lead at the moment. The battle could go either way. Her opponent, Josh, had a lot of tricks up his sleeve and was countering almost every attack that she used. Her points were now slightly lower than his and there was almost a minute left.

"Use Ice Charge!" Blair cried.

"What?!"

Pachirisu used Thunderbolt and Buneary used Ice Beam. The two moves slightly blended together and hit Ponyta and Pichu, causing them to get hit by electricity and then become frozen solid.

"Incredible!" Jillian cried. "The winner is Blair!"

... ...

"Arcanine, use Flamethrower! Poliwhirl, use Hydro Pump!" I cried.

I was currently facing off against a guy named Kyle, who was using Jolteon and Flareon.

"Jolteon, use Thunder! Flareon, use Flamethrower!"

The Thunder hit the water and shocked Poliwhirl. The two Flamethrowers collided and fought for dominance. They canceled one another out and created smoke.

"Arcanine, use Hyper Beam! Poliwhirl, use Hydro Pump!" Since the smoke was still heavy, the two moves broke out and hit Jolteon and Flareon before Kyle could command his Pokemon to dodge.

Glancing at the clock, I saw that Kyle's points were halfway gone and mine were slightly higher than his.

"Time's up! The winner is Michelle!"

... ...

"Dodge it!" Nikki cried as a Flamethrower and Shadow Ball headed towards her Pokemon.

"Electabuzz, use Thunderbolt, and Dratini, use Agility!"

"Charmander, Smokescreen!" Dratini was covered by the smoke.

"Electabuzz, use Swift and clear the smoke! Dratini, do it!" The smoke started to clear and Dratini used Dragon Rage, hitting Charmander and Eevee before they could be commanded to dodge the attacks.

"Time's up! The winner is Nikki!"

* * *

><p>The battles continued and soon the first round was over. We were now all waiting to see who would be facing who in the top thirty-two.<p>

I was one of the first people to battle in this round.

"Togetic, use Magical Leaf! Gastly, multiple Shadow Balls!"

"Counter with Surf and Aqua Jet!"

The stage had been turned into a pool since my opponent's Pokemon were Water types. I watched as the Surf took out the Magical Leaf and stopped the Shadow Balls.

"Yawn, Togetic!" Thankfully, Togetic was able to learn a new move recently and this move would help me.

"Now, Gastly! Use Shadow Ball!" I cried as the Pokemon fell asleep.

"...Michelle wins!"

... ...

"Beautifly, dodge! Umbreon, jump and use Shadow Ball!" Blair cried.

I watched as Beautifly flew in a circle and dodged the Whirlpool that headed towards it. Umbreon jumped and used a few Shadow Balls to break through the Whirlpool, making it break and crash to the ground.

"Incredible!" Jillian cried.

_That was really impressive._ I thought to myself.

"Now, Beautifly! Use Silver Mist, and Umbreon, use Night Shade!" The two moves merged together and made a beautiful sight.

"Dodge it!"

Blair's move hit the target and the battle was over. Blair had won.

... ...

"Dratini, use Twister! Vulpix, use Fire Spin! Do it together!" Nikki cried.

I was a little shocked that Nikki was using Dratini again, but it was her choice.

The two moves combined together and created a twister with fire surrounding it.

"Use Dig, Sandslash! Eevee, hide!"

The camera showed a glimpse of Nikki and she was smirking.

"Vulpix, use Flamethrower into the holes!"

Looking at the field, I saw that there were multiple holes from Sandslash using Dig. She had made a counter move while in the middle of the battle. Impressive.

"NO!"

"Dratini, use Dragon Rage!"

With Vulpix on one side and Dratini on the other, the other two Pokemon had no escape.

"Do it." The moves were fired into the holes and the ground broke, sending Sandslash and Eevee into the air, being hit by the broken ground. Looking at the points, I saw that the combination had just managed to give Nikki the win.

... ...

"Razor Leaf, Ivysaur! Roselia, Magical Leaf!"

"Psyduck, stop those with Confusion! Ponyta, use Flamethrower!" Amber shouted.

With the two moves frozen in the air with Confusion, the leaves were then burned by the Flamethrower.

"A wonderful display!" Jillian cried.

Amber went on to win her battle, too.

* * *

><p>Once again, we were waiting to see who would be facing who in the top sixteen. I was in the middle battles this time.<p>

... ...

"Buneary, use Ice Beam! Roselia, use Solar Beam!" Blair cried.

"Counter with Thunderbolt, Pikachu and Pichu!"

As Jillian had said, this was a battle of cute Pokemon. So far, Blair was winning the battle, but not by much. The two moves collided with one another and canceled each other out.

"Magical Leaf! Buneary, Bounce and Dizzy Punch!" The Bounce and Dizzy Punch combo looked like something that Dawn had done before or something similar to something that she had done.

"Pichu, use Sweet Kiss! Pikachu, use Double Team!" As Buneary came close to Pichu, she was hit by the Sweet Kiss. Magical Leaf missed as Pikachu made copies of itself.

"A wonderful counter!"

When the battle ended, Blair had just barely managed to hold on and win.

... ...

"Pidgeot, use Aerial Ace! Jigglypuff, use Rollout!" Amber cried. Amber had this all planned out. If the opponent's Pokemon went up, they would be hit by Aerial Ace. And if they stayed on the ground, they would be hit by Rollout. Clever.

I had only watched Amber compete in a contest once before the Grand Festival, so out of all of my friends, she was the one that I knew the least about when it came to contest performances and battles. As she was being declared the winner of her battle, I knew that I had my work cut out for me if I had to face her.

... ...

"Jolteon, use Thunderbolt on the wave! Gastly, go up higher!" As the wave of water came closer, Jolteon jumped and used Thunderbolt. As the Thunderbolt hit the wave, it also hit the Gyarados that had used the attack. Electricity and water never mix.

"Gastly, Shadow Ball!" I cried.

"Protect!"

I frowned as the Shadow Ball was blocked. My points were lower than my opponent's, but I still had plenty of time to catch up. Like Dawn had said to me, treat it just like any other contest.

... ...

"Use your own Shadow Ball, Gastly! Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip!" Nikki cried. The two Shadow Balls collided with one another. Bulbasaur's Vine Whip managed to hit Psyduck and wrap around its body.

"Night Shade, Gengar!"

"Bulbasaur, slam Psyduck into the ground! Gastly, be ready to stop Night Shade!"

In the end...Nikki managed to hold onto the lead and win.

* * *

><p>"...And that's it, folks! The coordinators who are in the top eight have made their way here and now we're showing who will be facing one another in tomorrow's battle round!"<p>

As the pictures were shown, my smile faded. I was glad to make it into the top eight, but now it was me and my friends going against one another tomorrow, if we all made it to the top four. The semifinals were so close and if we all won in the top eight...we would face one another.

* * *

><p>That night, we were all in my room. Amber, Nikki, and I were feeling strange.<p>

"I never imagined that I would make it this far in my first Grand Festival. Now I have to battle against my friends in the semifinals if I win." I said.

"It's strange, but kind of exciting...I guess." Amber said.

Blair was the only one who wasn't exactly freaked out with the news. She had been in four Grand Festivals already, having lost in the top eight once, the top four twice, and the finals once. She was trying her hardest to win this time.

"Girls, there's no need to be scared. We've been in your position countless times before." Zoey said.

"Zoey's right, just give it your best and at least you can say that you made it this far in your first Grand Festival." Dawn said.

* * *

><p>Before I knew it, the top eight battle round was over and the next battles were being decided. It was the semifinals round.<p>

"And here's the semifinal lineup!"

I was facing Nikki and Blair was facing Amber. Winners go to the final for the Ribbon Cup. We all looked at one another. This was it...

"The first battle will be Nikki and Michelle!" Jillian announced.

I stood up and walked over to Nikki. "Let's both give it everything we've got. And whoever loses, no hard feelings, right?" I said.

"Right. Our friendship is stronger than this. We're friends, no matter who wins. I'm happy that I made it this far. Don't hold back and I know that if I win or lose, we both gave it our all." Nikki replied with a smile.

I nodded my head and we walked out towards the stage.

"The first semifinal battle will now begin! To my right is Nikki and to my left is Michelle! Five minutes on the clock...and begin!" Jillian cried.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to calm myself.

"Dratini, Electabuzz, showtime!" Nikki cried, tossing her Pokeballs.

"Jolteon, Gastly, it's time! Spotlight!" I cried, tossing my Pokeballs.

"Remember, don't hold back!" Nikki called.

"I won't! You do the same!" I cried.

"Dratini, use Agility! Electabuzz, use Swift!"

"Jolteon, use Agility and Pin Missile at that Swift! Gastly, use Shadow Ball!"

Jolteon used Agility and when the Swift came towards her, she used Pin Missile, piercing the stars while the Shadow Ball took care of the rest. Sparkles fell around my Pokemon from the burst stars.

"Incredible!"

"Use Dragon Tail on Jolteon! Electabuzz, Thunderbolt!"

"Dodge, Jolteon! Gastly, use Dark Pulse!" I cried.

Before I could even blink, Dratini had hit Jolteon. That was too fast for Jolteon, but she had used Agility before in order to be faster. To my surprise, Electabuzz used Thunderbolt and Gastly used Dark Pulse. The two moves fought one another for dominance.

Nikki wasn't holding back and I was glad about that...but this was tough!

"Use Twister!"

"Use Thunderbolt on it!" I cried.

I was going to steal her own move. Dark Pulse and Thunderbolt canceled one another out, causing smoke.

"Gastly, use Night Shade! Jolteon, use Quick Attack to dodge the Twister!" I cried. The electricity had just hit the twister and was heading towards Jolteon. Jolteon ran and headed towards Electabuzz.

"Low Kick!" Nikki cried when Jolteon was too close for me to command. Jolteon cried out as she was hit full force and flung across the field. Gastly's Night Shade hit both of Nikki's Pokemon.

"We're rounding the two minute mark!" Jillian announced.

I wasn't going to look at the points...not until it was over.

"Use Swift! Dratini, use Hyper Beam!"

"Gastly, protect Jolteon! Use your Shadow Balls!" I cried.

The Swift attack wouldn't hurt Gastly, but it would hurt Jolteon. I had to give Jolteon time to recover, but it had to be quick.

Swift was mostly deflected by the Shadow Balls and a few of them hit Electabuzz. Dratini was close to firing the Hyper Beam.

"Thunderbolt!" Nikki cried.

"Dark Pulse! Jolteon, get up!" I cried.

Jolteon managed to get up right as Nikki cried, "Do it!"

"Jolteon, use Thunderbolt, quick!" I cried.

Jolteon planted her feet firmly on the ground and electricity shot from her body towards the Hyper Beam. But I had never seen a Thunderbolt that huge! What move was that?

"That's Thunder!" Nikki cried, shocked.

Thunder...Jolteon had learned a new move just in time!

The four moves, Thunder, Thunderbolt, Dark Pulse, and Hyper Beam, were all fighting for dominance now. Electabuzz and Gastly's moves canceled one another out, creating smoke and covering both Dratini and Jolteon. The only thing that you could see was the occasional spark or light.

The smoke cleared slightly and Dratini had sparks lingering on its body. Thunder had won out.

"Dratini!" Nikki cried.

I opened my mouth to issue another command when the buzzer went off. Nikki and I looked towards the screen.

"The winner of the first semifinal round, who will be moving on to the finals is..." Jillian trailed. "Michelle!"

Looking at the points, I had barely managed to beat Nikki. This was the toughest battle that we had ever fought. I felt a huge sense of relief.

I looked over and Nikki was kneeling next to her Pokemon, praising them before returning them. She stood up and walked across the field to me.

"Great battle, Michelle. That was by far our best battle." she said.

"I agree. You were amazing, Nikki." I said.

"Good luck in the finals. The top four...that's amazing for my first Grand Festival ever." she said, smiling and holding her hand out.

"Thanks again, great battle." I said, shaking her hand.

... ...

"The second round of the semifinals will now begin! To my left is Blair and to my right is Amber! Five minutes on the clock...and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Pidgeot, Ponyta, spotlight!" Amber cried, tossing her Pokeballs.

"Pachirisu, Buneary, curtain!" Blair cried, tossing her Pokeballs.

A strange choice for Blair, but her cute Pokemon had proven to be very strong.

"Ponyta, use Fire Spin! Pidgeot, use Quick Attack!"Amber cried.

"Pachirisu, use Quick Attack and Super Fang on Pidgeot! Buneary, Bounce!" Blair cried.

Pachirisu ran towards Pidgeot, who was coming towards Blair's Pokemon quickly. Pachirisu jumped into the air with its front teeth glowing and hit Pidgeot with its teeth and then used Quick Attack. Buneary came down from above after using Bounce and landed on Pidgeot and then hit Ponyta after bouncing off.

Amber looked shocked. Blair was the most prepared and experienced coordinator in the Grand Festival and she wasn't going easy. Amber needed to start fighting back!

"Pachirisu, use Swift! Buneary, Ice Beam!" Blair cried. The Ice Beam froze some of the Swift and the rest headed towards Amber's Pokemon.

"Twister! Ponyta, use Protect!" Amber cried. Pidgeot unleashed the twister and Protect came up just in time to protect Pidgeot and Ponyta.

"Aerial Ace!" Amber cried. Pidgeot zoomed through the air.

"Buneary, use Dizzy Punch on Ponyta!" Blair cried.

"Ponyta, use Fire Spin!"

As Buneary ran towards Ponyta, Blair noticed Pidgeot.

"Discharge!"

"NO!" Amber cried, realizing what had happened.

Ponyta was too busy with Buneary to protect Pidgeot. The electricity hit Pidgeot, who fell towards the field. The Fire Spin surrounded Buneary, trapping it.

"Bounce to get out!" Blair cried. Buneary jumped out of the attack and spun in the air.

"We're nearing the final minute!" Jillian cried.

"Aerial Ace! Flamethrower!" Amber cried.

"Ice Beam on Pidgeot! Dodge with Quick Attack!" Blair cried.

Ice Beam wouldn't work, Protect was probably still up so Ice Beam wouldn't be too effective if it even worked. The dome closed around Pidgeot as the Ice Beam hit. Buneary managed to dodge the Flamethrower.

"Time's up!" Jillian cried. "The winner is...Blair!"

Blair had managed to win by a few more points than I had in my battle.

"So the final battle will be Blair vs. Michelle! Who will win the Ribbon Cup and earn the title of Top Coordinator?"

**Author's Note: As the Grand Festival nears its end, only Michelle and Blair are left and will battle for the championship and the Ribbon Cup. Who will win and become a Top Coordinator?**

**Will it be Michelle, in her first Grand Festival ever?**

**Or Blair, who has competed in the Grand Festival four times already?**

**Find out as the Grand Festival concludes in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	55. Top Coordinator

**Michelle's POV**

"Well, folks, it's time! The final round of the Grand Festival is about to begin! Both coordinators are competing for the Ribbon Cup and the title of Top Coordinator! Now...to my left is Michelle, and to my right is Blair! Five minutes on the clock...and begin!" Jillian cried.

"Go, Michelle!" my friends shouted.

Grabbing my Pokeballs, I tossed them into the air. "Jolteon, Gastly, spotlight!" I cried.

"Roselia, Buneary, curtain!" Blair cried, tossing her Pokeballs.

Wasting no time, I called out the commands to my Pokemon. This was it...I had to give it my all.

"Jolteon, use Pin Missile! Gastly, use Dark Pulse!" I cried.

"Roselia, use Petal Dance! Buneary, use Ice Beam!" Blair cried.

Roselia jumped into the air and launched the Petal Dance, successfully avoiding my attacks. The Ice Beam and Dark Pulse were currently fighting against one another, but Pin Missile hit Buneary. My Pokemon couldn't avoid the Petal Dance, though.

"Use Agility, Jolteon! Gastly, Shadow Ball!" I cried.

"Buneary, dodge with Bounce and then use Ice Beam once more! Roselia, be ready to use Magical Leaf!"

I smirked. Buneary successfully dodged the Shadow Ball and Jolteon was speeding towards Roselia, who's roses were starting to glow white.

"Thunderbolt!" I cried.

"No!" Blair cried.

Jolteon continued to run towards Roselia and the Thunderbolt struck, stopping Magical Leaf.

"Gas!" Gastly cried as the Ice Beam hit it.

Roselia was recovering from the Thunderbolt. Gastly fell onto the stage.

"Gastly! No! Please get up!" I cried. "Jolteon, protect Gastly!"

"Use Solar Beam!" Blair cried.

"Thunder!" I cried.

Little did I know that I had just fallen into a trap.

"Do it!" Blair cried as the Thunder shot towards Roselia.

I looked at Gastly. "Gastly, please! You can't give up!" I cried.

Suddenly, Gastly started to glow white. I couldn't believe it! Gastly was evolving! When the light faded, Haunter was there.

"Unbelievable! Gastly evolved into Haunter!" Jillian announced.

"Dizzy Punch!" Blair cried.

Quickly looking, I saw that Buneary was behind Jolteon. The Solar Beam and Thunder were fighting for dominance.

"No!" I cried.

Both moves were able to get in some damage, since I heard both Pokemon cry out. Then, before Jolteon could do anything, Dizzy Punch hit her.

"Jolteon!" Jolteon fell to the ground, scratched and her breathing was uneven.

"Haunter, use Dark Pulse on Roselia!"

"Roselia, use Petal Dance!"

Before Petal Dance could do anything, Dark Pulse hit Roselia.

"Rose!"

"Buneary, use Bounce to finish Jolteon!" Blair cried. Jolteon had just managed to get up after getting hit by the Solar Beam and Dizzy Punch duo.

"Shadow Ball on Roselia!" I cried while Blair's Pokemon was still down.

The moves hit the Pokemon, who cried out in pain. And then, to my surprise, I heard the buzzers. X's lined the judges stands.

"Reaching the three minute mark, Jolteon and Roselia have both fainted and are unable to battle! It's now a one-on-one battle between Buneary and Haunter!" Jillian cried

I removed my Pokeball and returned Jolteon. "You did great, Jolteon. Thank you and take a well-deserved rest." I said.

Blair returned Roselia and looked at me.

Thanks to traveling and having Adam and Jason with me, I learned a lot more about the type advantages and disadvantages. This was going to be a battle between two Pokemon who could only use one move to attack. I could only have Haunter use Dark Pulse since Buneary was a Normal type. Blair could only use Ice Beam since Haunter was a Ghost type. Normal attacks don't affect Ghost Pokemon and Ghost attacks don't affect Normal Pokemon. This was going to be a little challenging.

"Buneary, spin and use Ice Beam!" Blair cried, breaking me from my thoughts.

"Haunter, dodge, then use Dark Pulse!" I cried.

I smiled as Haunter vanished, causing the Ice Beam to miss. Haunter appeared and fired the Dark Pulse.

"Bounce!" Blair cried. To my surprise, Buneary managed to dodge the attack. Blair's Buneary was really fast. I hadn't been able to figure that out when watching her battles.

"Ice Beam!"

"Dark Pulse!" I cried.

The two moves collided and fought for dominance. In the end, they canceled one another out, causing smoke to cover our Pokemon.

Hoping to hit Buneary through the smoke, I commanded Dark Pulse once more.

"Bun!" Buneary cried and fell towards the stage. Yes! A direct hit!

"Snap out of it, Buneary! Land on your feet!" Blair cried. Buneary managed to recover from the attack and spun, hitting the stage and launching back into the air to continue the battle.

"Ice Beam, and spin!"

"Dodge it!" I cried.

Buneary fired Ice Beam and spun while Haunter vanished, but Buneary's Ice Beam landed the hit on Haunter. It was the spinning that caused Haunter to get hit, since the ice was being sent across the stage.

"Only one minute left!" Jillian cried.

Looking closer, I saw that ice was beginning to form on Haunter, just slightly. Ice Beam was close to freezing Haunter solid.

"Vanish!" I cried. Haunter vanished and Buneary landed on the stage.

"Dark Pulse!" Haunter appeared behind Buneary and fired, landing a direct hit to Buneary's back.

"Bun! Buneary!" Buneary cried, flying forward from the impact. Buneary managed to get back onto its feet and faced Haunter.

"Ice Beam!"

"Dark Pulse!"

Once again, the two moves collided and fought for dominance. Ice Beam managed to win out and hit Haunter, right as the buzzer went off.

"Time's up!" Jillian cried.

Blair and I snapped our heads towards the board and looked at our points. They were virtually the same! But looking closer, I saw that...

"The winner of the Grand Festival is...Blair!" Jillian cried.

Blair had won by just a hair or two higher than my score.

Looking up, I saw that Blair's eyes were wide and she was beyond shocked by the news. I saw her looking at the points before the screen changed and showed her picture. Then her face showed an expression of joy and relief as she hugged her Buneary.

I felt sad, but it was okay. I gave it my all and I did my best. For my first Grand Festival, I would say that I did really well, making it to the finals and managing to come in second, or runner-up. That's pretty good for a first Grand Festival. My idol, Dawn, had this happen to her in her first Grand Festival, too. But look at where she was now: a Top Coordinator, known by people all over the world. And I knew that I would become just like her someday...I just can't give up.

"Great job on evolving, Haunter. You were amazing. Thank you. Take a well-deserved rest." I said as I returned my newly-evolved Pokemon.

I walked across the stage to where Blair was. "You did great, Blair. You battled hard and you deserved to win, especially after coming so close, only to lose in four Grand Festivals before this one." I said, extending my hand.

"Thanks, Michelle. But you didn't make it easy for me, you battled really hard, too." she said, shaking my hand.

I left and headed backstage. As I walked off of the stage and to the backstage area, I felt my disappointment come. I stopped walking and closed my eyes in sadness. I was so close and I lost.

Hearing footsteps, I looked up and saw Adam and Jason coming towards me. They hugged me and I hugged them back.

"You were fantastic out there, Michelle. You should be proud of yourself and your Pokemon for even making it this far. So wipe that frown off your face." Jason said.

"Yeah, Jason's right, Michelle. I mean, look at my mom. She lost in the finals to Zoey; Blair's mom, in her first-ever Grand Festival. But my mom was able to become a Top Coordinator over time and I know that you'll do it, too. You just have to keep training and keep moving forward, don't let this discourage you or make you give up on your dream." Adam said.

After hearing their words, I felt a lot better. "You guys are right. Thanks," I said, smiling.

I went to the dressing room to change and once I was finished, I joined everyone else in the stands to watch the closing ceremonies of the Grand Festival.

Blair was standing on the podium with all of her Pokemon around her. Solidad walked over to her with the Ribbon Cup in her hands.

"Congratulations, Blair. When I first won the Ribbon Cup on this very stage, I had lost in a few other Grand Festivals before that, so I know exactly how you feel right now. You and your Pokemon were spectacular and I'm proud to present you with the Ribbon Cup as proof of your victory." Solidad said, handing the cup to Blair, who in turn, raised it above her head. The crowd cheered loudly for her.

Jillian then walked over to Blair as the crowd calmed down. "Blair, would you like to say anything to the people watching here and on TV, having become a Top Coordinator?"

Blair looked slightly nervous when the microphone was extended towards her. "Well, I would like to say to every coordinator here, win or lose, you all were amazing and you should be proud that you even made it into the Grand Festival." she said.

"I would also like to thank my mom, who helped me train and encouraged me to pursue my dream. My family watching at home in Snowpoint City. My idol, Drew, for inspiring me to become a coordinator in the first place. I would also like to thank my rivals and friends for pushing me to become a better and stronger person and coordinator. And lastly, I want to thank my Pokemon, because without my Pokemon, I wouldn't be here right now or even who I am now."

The crowd cheered as Blair finished her speech.

"Well, folks, the Grand Festival has officially finished with our new Top Coordinator, Blair, from Snowpoint City! Until next year, I'm Jillian and thanks for being here and watching!"

* * *

><p>I put the last of my items in my bag. We were all packing up and getting ready to leave. As I pulled my bag close, I saw Amber pick up an envelope from her pillow.<p>

"What's that?" Blair asked.

Amber opened it and removed a piece of paper. "A letter...I think." she replied, slowly unfolding the paper.

Blair and I gathered around Amber to see.

_Amber,_

_I saw you in your first-ever Grand Festival and you performed wonderfully, making it into the top four! That's just amazing. I'm sorry that I couldn't be there in person to see it, but I watched you on TV. I wasn't there in person, but I was with you in spirit and in memory every step of the way on your journey. No matter what happens, don't give up on your dream to become a Top Coordinator. I know that you will make it someday, because you have the courage inside of you to do anything that you set your mind to. I hope that I can see you one day and I love you very much and I miss you._

_Your father, Antonio_

Amber smiled at the letter. "My father...he saw me. He was watching the whole time." she said.

"He's proud of you." Blair said.

"Yes, very proud of you. You now have something to know him by. If you ever feel discouraged, look at your father's words for encouragement." I said.

Amber smiled and said, "Thanks. You two are great friends. Ever since he disappeared when I was a baby, I always wondered about him and wondered if he's ever thought about me. It's really heartwarming to know that he still remembers me and loves me."

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

It was finally time for everyone to part ways and say goodbye for the time being. We were all gathered outside, saying our goodbyes.

"Well, my mom and I are heading home to Snowpoint City. We're going to see our family and celebrate my victory." Blair said. "Bye, and see you all again someday."

Zoey hugged my mom, and they said goodbye to one another, promising to keep in touch. Zoey then walked over to Nikki.

"You did a good job, Nikki. Just keep following your dream and never give up. You'll become a Top Coordinator one of these days. I can see your potential." Zoey said.

"Thank you, and I won't give up."

With a final wave, Blair and Zoey walked away.

"You know, a few weeks ago, I wasn't even sure if I would come here to the Grand Festival. I'm so glad that I did come, though. And I finished in the top four, which is great, in my opinion." Nikki said and then gave Michelle a quick hug.

"Bye bye! I'll see you guys again at the Pokemon League with Trevor next month." she said, backing up and waving.

"Bye, and I'll see you two in the Pokemon League." Trevor said to Jason and I, giving a small wave and walking after his sister, heading home to Neon Town.

"Well, I'm heading home to see my grandma." Amber said.

My mom walked over to her. "You did a great job in the Grand Festival, Amber. Just keep chasing after your dream and never give up on it. Make that dream a reality." she said.

Amber nodded her head. "I will. It's what my father would want, too."

"Hey, Amber...I hope that you see your father again someday." Michelle said.

Amber smiled and nodded her head. "I hope that you meet your father one day, too." she replied.

Amber said one more goodbye before she walked off. Michelle then faced us.

"I'm heading home to Cerulean City to see my mom again. I'll meet you guys next month right here at the Indigo Plateau for the Pokemon League." she said.

She started to hug everyone, thanking my parents for allowing her to stay with us for the past month and welcoming her into our home. She also thanked my mom for training her for the Grand Festival.

Then she knelt down and hugged Brittany. "I'll miss you, Brittany. I hope to see you again and remember that you have me and the other girls as your friends."

"I'll miss you, too." Brittany said, hugging her back.

Finally, Michelle stood up and walked over to Jason and I. She hugged us both, saying, "Thank you guys so much for everything you've done for me on our journey. If I never met you guys in Cerulean City and started traveling with you, I wouldn't be where I am right now or who I am now. I love you guys."

"We love you too, Michelle." we said and then separated.

"You know, I hate to admit this, but you've helped me. By watching you in contests, I've been able to come up with great strategies and techniques. I never thought that I would be able to learn from a coordinator. I'm glad that you traveled with us, and you'd better be there supporting us at the Pokemon League." said Jason.

"I'm glad that you traveled with us, Michelle. You've also helped me come up with even more ideas than I had before, so thanks. I'm glad that I met you too, because I think that I would have gone insane traveling with just him." I said.

"Hey!" Jason cried.

We all shared a laugh and gave each other one final hug.

"And like Jason said, you'd better be there cheering for us, and we know that you will." I said.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't miss it for the world. After all, you two were supporting me and cheering me on in every contest. See you guys in a month." she said, waving and walking away.

_Michelle...she's really something...something special._ I thought to myself as I watched her walk away.

With everyone gone, it was time that we headed home to Pallet Town. It was time to go home and start training for the Pokemon League.

**Author's Note: The Grand Festival has come to an end with Blair defeating Michelle and winning the Ribbon Cup. Sorry to disappoint everyone who thought that Michelle would win.**

**Everyone has gone their separate ways for now, but they all hope to see each other again someday. And as Michelle leaves Adam and Jason, she promises to be back for their battles in the Pokemon League in a month's time.**

**Be sure to stay tuned for the next chapter of Pokemon NG, where Adam and his family adjust to having Brittany living with them.**


	56. Brittany's Love

**Dawn's POV**

We had just entered Pallet Town after leaving the Grand Festival a few days ago. Brittany was beside me and I was currently showing her certain things and places that were in Pallet Town, since she hadn't seen much of the town before.

"You see that building way over there?" I asked, pointing.

"Yeah, what is it?" she asked.

"That's the Oak Pokemon Lab. That's where Jason's dad works. It's also where beginning trainers go to get their first Pokemon. You see the big open space behind it?"

"Yeah, it's huge!"

"Lots of Pokemon live there. Ash's, mine, and Jason's parents' Pokemon live there."

"Oh, wow!"

I pointed out a few more places to her and she was in awe of everything. I knew that she liked seeing so many different and new things, because she had never been allowed outside when with her dad. She was finally seeing the world and it was a lot to take in.

Jason started heading up to the lab, going to see his parents. After walking for a little while longer, we reached our house.

"This is where we live. Brittany, you'll be staying with us until your dad is released. We'll take good care of you, we promise." I said, looking down at her. Spending time with us had allowed Brittany to be a lot more sociable and trusting of us. I knew that she would adjust to living with us.

We went inside and unpacked. I had just finished putting the last of my clothes away and then walked into the living room when Ash walked up to me.

"I'm going to see my mom and let her know that we're back." he said, kissing my cheek.

"I'm going to hang out with Jason." Adam said.

"Okay, be back by supper." I said.

They left the house and that left me and Brittany, who was currently sitting on the couch.

"What were contests like for you?" she asked.

I smiled at her and asked, "Would you like to see for yourself?"

She smiled. "Yes!"

"I'll be right back." I said as I walked off.

I returned with a box containing videos of my contests over the years. I grabbed one at random and put it in and it started to play. As Brittany watched, her face was covered with the same amazed expression that it had had when she was watching the Grand Festival.

"I have a lot of other videos in the box if you want to watch them." I said.

She smiled and nodded her head. "What's it like?" she asked, glancing at me.

"A contest?" I asked.

She nodded her head.

"They're amazing. It's really fun. You get to dress up and perform with your Pokemon."

"Is it hard?"

"It's a challenge, but everything is. You have to try your hardest to win and get a ribbon. You also have to bounce back if you lose. But in the end, it's worth it."

"Wow..." she said in awe at an appeal that caught her attention. "Why did you become a coordinator?"

"My mom, your grandma, was a coordinator, and a very well-known one, at that. I watched her contests and it inspired me to be one. I found the performing more appealing than the battling." I replied.

I had just sat back down after starting another contest when my mom walked in.

"Dawn, can I talk to you privately?" she asked.

"Yeah, sure. I'll be right back, Brittany." I said, walking out of the living room and following my mom upstairs. We walked into a room and I waited.

"Dawn...ever since Ash came back last month, we haven't really spoken. You've barely talked to me, you barely say one word to me. Why is this? Is there something wrong?" she asked.

I remained quiet and looked at my mom.

"Does it have to do with the revelation of Darien and Brittany when the kids talked about Team Rocket when they came home?" she asked.

I nodded my head and said, "You lied to me about my father and kept the fact that I had a twin brother a secret from me...my whole life. I know that you didn't want me to grow up worrying and wondering where they were, but you continued to lie and keep this a secret from me even when I was old enough to understand it. I had to find out from my son and his friends. It would have been easier if you had just told me yourself."

I had tried to feel okay about this, but I couldn't. My mom had kept this a secret from me for my entire life. It hurt and I felt betrayed. I told her about things in my life that I didn't want to share, but I did it anyways. Why couldn't she have done the same?

My mother sighed and looked at me. "I know that I should have told you when you were older, but I didn't know how. All your life you were told that your father was dead and you were an only child. I was trying to protect you. Can you try and see this from my point of view? What would you have done?"

She did have a point. If I was in her shoes...I think that I would have done the same.

"I understand. And with some time, I think that we can fix our relationship." I said. "Despite the secret, I've accepted my new family member. Brittany has grown up almost alone and has had nobody who's shown her love. Brittany needs me to be that kind of person to her. Besides, she's my niece and she's family. That's what families do, they look after each other."

We walked downstairs and I heard the front door open. Once we were down the stairs, I saw Ash, his mom, Gary, and Leaf.

"I told them that Brittany was here and brought them over to introduce her to them." he said.

"It'll be good for her to meet more people." I said.

We all walked into the living room, where Brittany had just finished another contest. She looked up, hearing footsteps and when she saw the unfamiliar faces, her expression changed. She was slowing trying to go back into her shell.

Ash walked over to her and knelt in front of the couch. "Don't worry, they're nice people. That's my mom, Delia. She'll be your grandmother from my side. Those are Jason's parents, Gary and Leaf." he said.

She looked at Ash, who nodded his head, encouraging her. She slowly moved her eyes and looked at the three new faces.

"Jason looks just like you." she said to Gary.

This caused the adults to laugh. After a little while, Brittany was comfortable with the new faces.

* * *

><p>A few weeks passed since returning from the Grand Festival. Brittany was playing outside with Pikachu, Piplup, Buneary, and Pachirisu. She was having so much fun and had adjusted perfectly to her new life in Pallet Town.<p>

"Brittany has changed so much while living here." I said, looking at her laughing and running with the Pokemon.

Ash and my mom looked out the window and watched her for a few moments.

"You're right, Dawn. When Brittany first met everyone, she was shy, nervous, and quiet. Now she's opened up to everyone. She's full of life and energy and she's always happy. She's just like you when you were her age." my mom said.

I smiled to myself. It was great to see her having fun after everything that she had gone through.

"Brittany and Dawn are a lot alike. Dawn was the first person that Brittany opened up to. Remember when I first brought her to meet everyone? She took one look at Dawn and ran to her, hugging her. It took her forever to warm up to all of us, but for Dawn, it was right off the bat." Ash said, taking the plates from me and moving to put them away.

Hearing everything that they had said, I realized that Brittany really was like me. "Well, Brittany may think of me as a motherly figure. Her mother has been missing from her life. She's never had a woman around to take care of her. That could be why she bonded so well with me, and how I bonded so well with her." I said.

We walked into the living room and were sitting and talking when Brittany and the Pokemon walked back into the house. Brittany walked into the living room and looked around.

"Where's Adam?" she asked.

"He's probably at the lab with Jason, training for the Pokemon League." Ash said.

"What's the Pokemon League about?" she asked.

"It's a tournament like the Grand Festival. But instead of coordinators, it's where the strongest trainers gather to battle."

"Daddy would probably do really well in that tournament. He's a really strong trainer."

"He is a strong trainer. He would do well in the Pokemon League." Ash agreed, having battled Darien when he was captured.

After a few minutes of silence, Brittany spoke. "I've decided what I want to do when I'm old enough to travel. I want to be a Pokemon coordinator like aunt Dawn and grandma." she said. "I became interested in contests after going to the Grand Festival, but watching aunt Dawn perform in those videos helped me make my mind up. I hope that my dad will be okay with it."

"I'm glad that you've found something that you want to do with your life. I can see that you have a passion from contests like I did when I was younger, and you have the drive and spirit to push yourself to reach your goals." I said.

She smiled at me. "I'm really excited. I can't wait until I'm ten and then I can travel and compete in contests! I also have one more thing that I want to tell you...

"Ever since I was released, you've welcomed me into your home and into the family with open arms. You've taken care of me and I just wanted to say...to tell you that...I love you. I love you all."

We all knelt down to her level and she hugged us one by one.

"We love you too, Brittany."

I had been waiting for a long time to hear Brittany say that. She'd opened up her heart to us and finally accepted us as her family. By showing her our love and kindness, we had touched her heart. Love had been all too rare in her life, and now she had love from so many people. And she had returned that love with her own.

My mom and I wiped a few stray tears from our eyes as we stood up, having cried tears of happiness at hearing Brittany's loving words.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

It was finally here. We were finally here. We had finally reached the Indigo Plateau where the Pokemon League was held every year. My parents and Jason's parents, along with Brittany, had come with us while my grandmas stayed home to watch it on TV.

Brittany was looking around excitedly. "It's like the Grand Festival, but the decorations are different and the stands sell different stuff." she said. "Oh...can we get some snacks like last time?"

"Yes, as soon as we get the boys checked in and registered." my mom replied.

We walked into the Pokemon Center and Jason and I walked to the front desk.

"We're here to compete." we said.

"May I see your Pokedexes and badges?" Nurse Joy asked.

We handed them over and Nurse Joy scanned them into the system.

"You're all set." she said, handing our things back to us.

We walked out of the Pokemon Center and I saw orange hair out of the corner of my eye. Michelle! She was looking around, trying to find us.

"Michelle!" I called.

Jason glanced over and saw her. Michelle snapped her head towards the direction where she had heard her name called and saw us. A smile spread across her face and she started running towards us. We ran towards her and we hugged one another.

"I told you two that I would meet you here." she said as we pulled away.

"It's great to see you again, Michelle." Jason said.

"Likewise,"

"We missed you." I said.

"I missed you guys, too."

Our families walked over to us and Michelle smiled at them.

"Where are you all going?" she asked.

"We're going to the hotel that we stayed at during the Grand Festival to get our rooms." my dad replied.

After checking into the hotel, Jason, Michelle, and I were in a room together, my parents and Brittany were in another, and Jason's parents in another.

We were leaving when we ran into Trevor and Nikki.

"Hi, hi!" Nikki cried.

"Hey," Trevor said.

"What floor are you staying on?" Nikki asked.

"Second..."

"Us, too! That's great!"

"I'm going to go. I have to talk to the Elite Four about a few final details before the tournament starts." my dad said.

"I'm going to take Brittany to get some snacks." my mom said and Brittany smiled happily.

Jason, Michelle, Nikki, Trevor, and myself decided to go and look around.

The Pokemon League was so close to starting and I could only wonder what was going to happen.

**Author's Note: After meeting the rest of the gang and spending more time with them, Brittany has finally opened up enough to tell her family that she loves them, a thing that they've been waiting to hear for a long time.**

**Now everyone has gathered at the Indigo Plateau for the Pokemon League. What challenges await Adam and Jason? Who will win the tournament?**

**Find out in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	57. A Legendary Battle, A Sinister Plot!

Jason, Michelle, Nikki, Trevor, and myself were currently walking around the Indigo Plateau.

"Wait! Wait!"

Turning, we saw Brittany running towards us with an ice cream cone with an extra scoop on it.

"Hey, Brittany. It's great to see you again." Michelle said.

"Hi, Brittany!" Nikki cried.

Both of them hadn't seen Brittany since the Grand Festival.

"After aunt Dawn got me some snacks, I asked if I could go and be with Adam and everyone else. She said that I could so I hurried to find you guys."

Brittany really had lost her nervousness when being around people. She was really open, social, and friendly now.

We started walking again as Brittany continued talking.

"Oh, and guess what? I've decided to be a coordinator when I get old enough to travel. Aunt Dawn really inspired me to become one." Brittany said, looking at Michelle and Nikki.

"That's great, Brittany. I look forward to challenging you in the future." Nikki said.

"Yeah, likewise, Brittany. You'll do great and I can't wait to see what you've got." Michelle said.

"So Nikki, what did your family say to you about your performance in the Grand Festival when you went home?" Michelle asked.

"They were happy that I made it as far as I did. To make it into the top four in my first-ever Grand Festival is amazing in their eyes and mine and I'm so glad that I competed. How did your mom react?" Nikki said.

"My mom was glad that I had fun. She was very proud that I made it into the finals and came in second. Like your parents, my mom also said that for my first Grand Festival, where I placed was amazing." Michelle replied.

We walked past the giant Indigo Stadium where the final battles would be taking place. I was shocked by the size. Seeing it on TV, it didn't look as big as it actually was.

"Wow...it's huge." Brittany said in awe.

Nikki and Michelle nodded their heads, amazed by the size.

"I've never battled in front of this many people before." Jason said, looking at the rows and rows of empty seats.

"Neither have I. It'll be a first." I said.

Trevor had been silent and was looking at the stadium.

"You know, Adam, you have never beaten me in a battle before." he said.

"Well, that's true, but my dad had the same thing happen to him once. When he was traveling in Sinnoh, he had a rival named Paul. In the Sinnoh League, he had to face Paul and every battle that they had had before, he had lost. But in the Sinnoh League, he won. You never know, maybe I'll finally beat you here." I said.

"If we go against one another, give it your all."

"I will and you do the same."

* * *

><p><strong>Dawn's POV<strong>

I woke up and glanced at the clock. It was the middle of the night. What had woken me? I was about to go back to sleep when I heard what had woken me. It was faint, but there was soft crying coming from Brittany's bed.

I got up out of the bed, waking Ash as I did so, and walked over to Brittany's bed. I sat on the side of her bed and turned her head to look at me. She was indeed crying because tears were running down her face and soft sobs were coming from her.

Brittany's eyes saw me and she hugged me, crying into my shirt. I held her and smoothed her hair down, gently rocking her as I did so. Ash always did this when I was sad and my mom had done it to me when I was little. It helped to calm me down and comfort me.

"I'm sorry for waking you." Brittany said softly, her voice muffled.

"It's okay, sweetie. We're here for you." I said softly. "What's wrong?"

"I'm thinking about my daddy. I haven't seen him in months and although I'm happy to be with you all...I miss my daddy and I'm worried for him." she said.

Ash walked over and stood beside the bed. "Brittany, I've talked to your dad several times over the months. He always asks how you are and I tell him how you're doing. I'm doing everything that I can to get your dad released so that he can be with you again." he said.

Brittany was quiet for a few moments. "But daddy has done really bad things. He captured and killed people and Pokemon. What if the police never let him go? What if they decide that his crimes are too bad and he stays in prison forever? I'll never see him again. Or...what if they kill my daddy for what he's done?"

"He's a changed man now and the police can see it. Have hope, Brittany." I said. Although I hadn't mentioned it to anyone, I wanted to see him, too. Darien was my long-lost brother and I had never seen him before.

"Your father also made up for his wrongdoings by choosing to help get me freed and stop Team Rocket. Your father helped to save the world. I promise you, Brittany, I'm doing everything that I can to get him set free. If the possibility that you can't see him again does happen, we'll raise you. So no matter what happens, you'll be with your family. You will always be with your family." Ash said.

I wiped the stray tears from Brittany's face and a small smile came over her face. She was calming down. I kissed her head and smoothed her hair down.

"Thank you...for everything." she said softly. "I love you."

"We love you too, Brittany." I said gently.

Ash said goodnight once more and walked back over to the bed. I went to move, but Brittany was still holding onto my waist.

"Can you sleep here tonight? It would make me feel better." she asked, looking at me.

I smiled at her. "Sure," I said, climbing under the covers.

Brittany snuggled down next to me and before I knew it, she was fast asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Ash's POV<strong>

It was finally time. Today was the first day of the tournament. All of the trainers who were competing, over a hundred of them, were standing in the stadium, looking up. The Elite Four and myself stood at the top of the stadium beside the torch. I took the torch from Lance and lit the giant torch, signaling that the Pokemon League had begun. The crowd cheered as the fire engulfed the bowl.

A cry from the sky caused me to glance up. A Flying Pokemon was heading towards the top of the stadium. Looking closely, I saw someone on the Pokemon. It landed on the top of the stadium right by me and the figure got off.

When the figure turned, my eyes widened slightly. It was Paul! The cheering had stopped and the stadium was silent, everyone was watching.

"I challenge you, Ash, to a one-on-one battle! The winner will be named the new Pokemon Master!" he cried.

The crowd gasped upon hearing the news.

"I had been training relentlessly during the months that you were missing, hoping to win the tournament that was going to be held to name a new Pokemon Master. But then you returned and the tournament was canceled. I won't let all of my hard work be for nothing! I won't be denied my rightful place as Pokemon Master!"

"You can't challenge Ash at-"

"No," I said, stopping Lance from further refusal.

"Why are you so confident that you can win?" I asked, looking at Paul.

He smirked and removed a Pokeball and released the Pokemon.

"Latias!" I cried, shocked upon seeing the Pokemon.

"This is the Pokemon that I'll be using. As good as you are, Ash, you'll never be able to beat a Legendary Pokemon!" Paul cried.

Upon looking at Latias, I realized that this was the Latias from Altomare that I had befriended. Adam had told me that Paul had captured her. Latias looked at me sadly. I sensed that she didn't want to battle me. As I looked at Latias, I frowned. She didn't deserve to be in the hands of a trainer like Paul.

I really didn't want to battle Latias, I didn't want to hurt her. And I especially didn't want to risk losing my title of Pokemon Master. But I had no choice, I couldn't let Latias be controlled by Paul.

I looked up at Paul. "I accept your challenge, Paul. But if I win, you have to release Latias forever." I said.

"Fine. If a Legendary Pokemon can't beat you, then it's useless and not worth my time, anyway." Paul said.

The crowd was now roaring with excitement. As the trainers left the field and we made our way onto the field, I was thinking of who I could use to defeat Latias.

I stood on my side of the field, thinking of who I could use when I felt a pain in my hand. I pulled back my black fingerless glove and saw that the mark on my hand was glowing.

"Of course!" I muttered to myself as I remembered how I got that mark. "I have power over all of the Legendary Pokemon. In order to defeat a Legendary Pokemon, I need one, too."

Focusing my Aura into the symbol, I cried out, "I choose you, Mewtwo!" Mewtwo appeared out of thin air and descended onto the battlefield.

I looked at Paul and he was in shock and everyone else was murmuring in shock. His shock then turned into rage. His confidence of being able to win had just disappeared. I looked to the referee and nodded my head.

"The battle between Pokemon Master, Ash Ketchum, and the challenger, Paul, will now begin! The winner will be named the new Pokemon Master! Battle begin!"

Since Mewtwo was a Legendary and had battled without a trainer before, I didn't call any commands out to him. I was going to let him battle how he pleased.

"Just hit Latias once to finish the battle. Don't hurt her."

I saw Mewtwo look at me and faintly nod understanding that he understood.

"Use Dragon Pulse!" Paul yelled. A blue ball of energy formed between Latias's hands and then it headed towards Mewtwo.

Mewtwo threw a Shadow Ball to stop the attack.

"Use Psychic to move it and make it hit!" Paul cried. The attack hit Mewtwo, but hardly did any damage.

"Mist Ball!"

He deflected the Mist Ball away.

"Dragon Pulse again!"

Each attack Paul called out was deflected by Mewtwo and his powerful Psychic abilities.

"Psychic!"

Mewtwo used his own Psychic and canceled the attack.

"Zen Headbutt!"

Latias sped headfirst towards Mewtwo. But Mewtwo created a blue energy bubble around him and Latias's attack did no damage.

Paul was getting frustrated. None of his attacks were working and he couldn't believe that a Pokemon could battle on its own without commands from it's trainer and actually be able to win.

"Mewtwo, end this." I said.

Mewtwo nodded and charged a powerful Hyper Beam. Mewtwo let the attack go and Paul yelled for Latias to dodge. But Latias defiantly remained still, ignoring Paul, and let the attack hit her. She wanted me to win this battle.

Latias cried out and landed on the field and didn't get up.

"Latias is unable to battle! Mewtwo wins! Ash Ketchum remains the Pokemon Master!"

The crowd was excited at seeing a battle of Legendaries and cheered for me for still being Pokemon Master.

Paul shook his head and returned Latias and tossed the Pokeball. Latias appeared surrounded by a blue light. She was free from Paul.

"Pathetic." Paul said and left the stadium with a furious and defeated look on his face.

"Don't hesitate to call on me again if you ever need my help." Mewtwo said and disappeared.

Latias flew over and happily rubbed her head against me, thanking me for freeing her.

"You're welcome and it's great to see you again. You're free now, go on home to Altomare. Don't worry, you won't be bothered again. Go and protect Altomare, like you and Latios did." I said, rubbing her head.

"And I'll call on you if I ever need your help, just like I did with Mewtwo." I added, putting my glove back on.

Latias cried out once more and then flew away, disappearing quickly, heading home for Altomare.

Now that this battle was over, the Pokemon League could finally start.

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

As Paul walked through the dark hallways of the stadium after his loss at the hands of his most hated rival, a man's voice from the shadows spoke to him, causing him to stop.

"Even with a Legendary Pokemon you still can't defeat Ash Ketchum?" said the man.

"I thought that with that much power on my side, I would finally triumph. I had no idea that he too could use Legendary Pokemon in battle." Paul said in disgust.

"How many times have you lost to him now?"

"What do you care?"

"You'll find out why in a minute. Answer my question."

"I've lost too many times. I haven't been able to defeat him since I battled him in the Sinnoh League so many years ago. I've trained my Pokemon to be much stronger than his. I've trained them longer and harder but it's never enough. And to make it even worse, he now has Legendary Pokemon at his disposal."

"And how do you feel about him?"

"I hate him! Everything that I've worked towards for my entire life is always all for nothing!"

"Then we have something in common. I hate Ash just as much as you do. Both of us have been denied something that we deserve because of him. We share a common foe."

"What are you talking about? What did Ash do to you?"

"You lost your rightful place as Pokemon Master because of him. I lost the woman that I love and deserve to be with because of him."

"You mean his wife? What do you care about her?"

The man stepped out of the shadows and showed his face. Paul immediately recognized him.

"I see," said Paul. "Now I know why you're interested in them."

"You tried to take advantage of Ash's disappearance to become Pokemon Master. I tried to take advantage of it to win back the heart of the woman that I love. But we both failed when he returned. So we both want Ash Ketchum out of the way for different reasons. What would you do if I told you that I have a plan to satisfy both of our goals?"

"You know how we can get rid of him?"

"Yes, but we can't do it alone. Luckily, I know the people who can get it done for us. I don't know where they are but I know someone who does."

"What makes you think that these people will agree to help us?"

"Oh, they will. They also have a deep hatred for the Pokemon Master that's even stronger than our own. If we tell them our plan, they will gladly help us. So tell me, Paul, are you interested? Do you want Ash Ketchum gone...forever?"

"Yeah..." Paul said, holding out his hand and the man shook it.

"Good. Here's what we do."

**Author's Note: As the Pokemon League begins, Ash defeats his old rival-turned-enemy, Paul, and retains his title of Pokemon Master. He also tries out his new power that he acquired at the Temple of Legends and uses Mewtwo to win Latias's freedom.**

**But behind the scenes, a sinister plot is being hatched as Paul and an unknown man, who both have a score to settle with Ash, are plotting to get rid of him forever!**

**Who is this man? What is his plan? Who are they planning to get to help them? What will happen to Ash? What will unfold in the Pokemon League?**

**Find out in the continuing chapters of Pokemon NG!**


	58. The Pokemon League, Round 1

"So what was your first time battling in the Pokemon League like?" Jason asked. He and I were in our room, talking to our dads about their first time in Pokemon League.

"Well, back then, I was very different from how I am now. I was really popular and always had a group of girls following me everywhere and cheering me on while Ash had nobody except for his friends and mom." Gary explained.

"But despite all of your bragging and claiming to be better than me, I made it further into the tournament than you did." my dad said.

"That you did. You made it into the top sixteen."

"I won my first-ever Pokemon League battle using just my Kingler, too. I lost in the top sixteen to Ritchie since Charizard refused to battle."

I looked at Jason, since he had a Charizard.

"Don't worry, my Charizard will obey me." Jason replied.

I knew that Jason had been training with Charizard more than any of his other Pokemon.

"The rules of the Pokemon League are a lot different from regular battles. There are four smaller stadiums besides the main one. Each stadium is a different type of battlefield: Ice, water, grass, and rock. The trainers are randomly selected for their battles and which battlefield they will battle on. The first sixteen trainers to win in all four stadiums go to the top sixteen, which are then randomly paired up with the winners going to the top eight, top four, and then the finals. All battles from the top sixteen and onwards are held in the Indigo Stadium. The battles are three-on-three until the top sixteen, which are six-on-six." my dad explained.

"Do you two know who you're battling?" Gary asked.

"No," we replied.

We walked to the Pokemon Center and looked at a large screen which showed all of the battles for the day, who will be battling, which battlefield, and what time. Looking at the screen, I saw that I was battling on the water battlefield against some girl. Jason was battling on the rock battlefield against some guy. Both of our battles were at the same time.

Looking back, I saw my mom and Leaf walking over to us.

"Where are the others?" I asked.

"Brittany is spending some time with Michelle and Nikki. What are you guys doing?" she replied.

"We were just telling them about our first time in the Pokemon League." Gary replied.

Leaf laughed. "I remember all of those girls that followed you around back then. It's a good thing that I didn't love you back then or things wouldn't have been pretty."

"Ash, I have to talk to you about your battle with Paul today. What were you thinking when you accepted Paul's challenge? That was risky, Ash, putting your title on the line like that. What if you had lost? If that had happened, then everything that you had worked towards your entire life would've been for nothing! Not to mention that you didn't have any idea about what Pokemon you were going to use against Latias!" my mom cried.

"I couldn't let Paul control Latias. I saw how sad and miserable Latias was and I knew that she needed to be free from Paul. I couldn't just let a Legendary Pokemon be at the mercy of Paul. You know how he treats his Pokemon. I couldn't let her suffer through that. Would you? And even if I didn't have the Legendaries to help me, I still would have found a way to win so Latias could be free." my dad replied, defending himself.

"You mean that you didn't have a plan and would've improvised?! Oh, you're still as reckless as you were when we were kids!"

"Yeah, but you love me anyway." my dad joked.

My mom paused and her anger faded away and she smiled. "Yes," she said as they kissed.

* * *

><p>Later, we were all standing together outside of the stadium. Our battles would be starting soon.<p>

"Good luck, Jason." I said.

"You too, Adam." Jason said.

My mom, dad, and Brittany would be watching my battle while Gary and Leaf would watch Jason's. Michelle would have to decide who she was going to watch, since we were both battling at the same time in two different stadiums.

"Which battle are you going to watch, Michelle?" Brittany asked.

She thought for a minute before saying, "Adam's."

"Well, that figures." Jason muttered quietly.

_Why did he keep saying that?_ I wondered to myself. This wasn't the first time that I had heard Jason say those words to himself when Michelle had chosen to do certain things. I pushed the thought into the back of my mind. I had more important things to focus on right now.

We split up and walked to where our battles were going to take place.

"Good luck, Adam!" Brittany cried.

"Good luck," Michelle and my parents said.

They walked to their seats and I walked to the water battlefield, people screaming as I entered. I took the field and waited, looking at my opponent. She gave a small nod of acknowledgment in my direction. She was tall and looked a few years older than me. She had blonde hair that fell to her shoulders and bright blue eyes. She was wearing a pair of knee length dark blue shorts, a red tank top, black sneakers, and a dark blue glove on her right hand.

"The battle between Adam Ketchum and Holly will now begin! Each trainer will use three Pokemon and the battle will be over when all of one trainer's Pokemon are unable to battle."

"Wartortle, let's show 'em!" I cried, throwing my Pokeball. I had chosen to use Wartortle since the field was water. Wartortle would have an advantage.

"Wartortle!" Wartortle cried, landing on the platform.

"Golbat, let's go!" Holly cried, tossing her Pokeball.

"Scree!" Golbat cried, flying in the air.

"Let the battle begin!" the referee declared.

Holly called out the first command. "Golbat, use Swift!"

"Wartortle, use your counter shield!" I cried.

As the Swift headed towards Wartortle, Wartortle started to spin while using Water Gun, successfully blocking the Swift and hitting Golbat.

"Golbat, use Haze!"

"Be alert, Wartortle." I said, trying to spot Golbat's outline in the thick smoke.

"Acrobatics!" Holly cried. Before I had time to call out for Wartortle to dodge, Golbat was landing a direct hit and causing Wartortle to fall into the water.

"And Golbat delivers a powerful attack on Wartortle!"

"Wartortle!" I cried, looking into the water. Wartortle popped his head above the water, waiting.

"Aqua Tail!" I cried. Wartortle jumped out of the water and flipped, water swirling around his tail, before sending the water straight towards Golbat.

"Dodge it!" Holly cried.

"Incredible! Golbat managed to dodge!"

"Water Gun!" I cried.

"Use Supersonic!" Holly cried.

"Wartortle, into the water!" Wartortle stopped his attack and dove under the water. Supersonic missed him. I looked into the water and Wartortle was watching me. I pointed up and Wartortle jumped out of the water.

"Rapid Spin!"

"Dodge it!" Holly cried.

Golbat couldn't dodge in time. Wartortle slammed into it and it fell towards the water, losing altitude. Golbat flapped its wings hard, regaining flight.

"Use Water Gun!" I cried.

"Dodge it! Then use Air Cutter!"

Golbat successfully dodged the attack and launched sharp blades of air.

"Dodge and use Rapid Spin!" I cried, not giving Holly time to keep dodging my attacks.

"No!" she cried.

Golbat fell towards the water, but this time it wasn't regaining flight. Holly removed her Pokeball and returned her Pokemon before it took an unwanted swim.

"Golbat is unable to battle! Wartortle wins!"

"Yanmega, let's go!" Holly cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Wartortle, use Hydro Pump!"

"Dodge! Then use Sonic Boom!" Holly cried.

Yanmega was fast and successfully dodged the attack and fired Sonic Boom. Wartortle got hit and slid on the platform.

"Use Steel Wing!"

"Dodge it!" I cried.

Yanmega was too fast and Wartortle got hit by the attack. Wartortle fell on the platform and cried out.

"Use Water Gun!" I cried.

"Quick Attack!"

I smirked. "Rapid Spin, Wartortle!" I cried. While still using Water Gun, Wartortle used Rapid Spin and flew towards Yanmega. The force of Quick Attack sent Wartortle flying back, but damage had been done to Yanmega. Wartortle popped out of his shell and landed back on the platform.

"Use Sonic Boom!"

"Wartortle, into your shell."

Wartortle retreated into his shell and took the attack, which sent him flying into the air.

"Rapid Spin again!" I cried. With the momentum from the attack, Wartortle was speeding towards Yanmega and slammed into it before Holly could call out a command.

"Now use Skull Bash!" I cried, since Wartortle was still close to Yanmega. Yanmega hadn't recovered from Rapid Spin and was hit once again. Looking at both Pokemon, I saw that neither could take much more.

"Silver Wind!" Holly cried.

"Dodge it!"

Wartortle couldn't dodge in time.

"Yanmega, it's time to end this. Use Ancient Power!"

"No!" I cried, since Wartortle hadn't fully recovered.

Ancient Power hit Wartortle and Wartortle laid on the platform.

"War-" the referee started. But Wartortle stood up and cried out his name. He wasn't beaten just yet!

"Hydro Pump!" I cried. The attack hit Yanmega, who fell onto the platform.

"Yanmega is unable to battle! War-" the referee cried as Wartortle fell to the ground.

"Wartortle is unable to battle! It's a tie!"

Holly removed her final Pokeball and looked at it.

"Feraligatr, let's go!" she cried.

I would have a type advantage once again. I looked down at Pikachu. "Pikachu, let's show 'em!" I cried. I saw Holly frown when Pikachu jumped out onto the platform.

"Feraligatr, use Hydro Pump!" Holly cried.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" I cried.

The Thunderbolt was absorbed through the water and shocked Feraligatr.

"Use Agility, Pikachu."

"Feraligatr, use Slash!"

"Iron Tail!"

The two moves clashed against one another before canceling each other out.

"Use Volt Tackle!" I cried.

"Dodge it!"

Using Agility had paid off. Volt Tackle hit Feraligatr before it could dodge and knocked it into the water.

"Now use Thunderbolt!" Pikachu jumped into the air and released the Thunderbolt, hitting the water and the submerged Feraligatr. Sparks lingered on the water and Feraligatr pulled itself out of the water, heavily damaged.

"Use Ice Fang!"

"Use Iron Tail to block!" I cried.

Pikachu's tail became covered in ice.

"Do it!" I cried. Pikachu flipped and slammed his heavy ice-covered Iron Tail on Feraligatr's head...and it fainted.

"Feraligatr is unable to battle! Pikachu wins! The winner is Adam Ketchum!" the referee cried, followed by loud cheers.

"Great job, Pikachu." I said, rubbing his head as he hopped onto my shoulder.

I walked over to the other side where Holly was returning her Pokemon. She looked up and saw me and nodded her head.

"Great battle. That last move you pulled off was incredible. Was it a contest technique?" she asked.

"Thanks. And yeah, it was. You and your Pokemon were great." I said, holding out my hand.

"You too, and good luck." she said, shaking my hand.

I walked out and met my family.

"Great job, Adam!" Brittany cried.

"Good job, sweetie. You were great." my mom said, hugging me.

"Great job, Adam. You and your Pokemon were amazing." my dad said, hugging me.

"Congrats, Adam!" Michelle cried, happily hugging me.

Jason and his parents walked over.

"Jason won his battle without losing a single Pokemon." Gary said.

So Jason had done what my dad had done. I didn't manage to do the same, but I had tried.

"We're off to a great start so far." Jason and I said.

"Don't get too far ahead of yourselves." said Gary.

"Because the real challenge hasn't even started." said my dad.

**Author's Note: The Pokemon League has begun and both Adam and Jason are off to a great start!**

**Find out what challenges and challengers await them as the Pokemon League continues in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	59. A Battle of Speed, A Battle of Egos!

"Dodge it!" I cried out desperately for Wartortle to dodge.

I was facing off against a guy named Kyle on the Rock battlefield. He looked to be only one or two years older than myself and had black hair cut short and dark blue eyes. He was wearing a zip-up blue jacket that was halfway zipped up over a white shirt, jeans, and red, blue, and white sneakers.

"Wartortle is unable to battle! Magmar wins!"

I looked at my fallen Pokemon and removed my Pokeball. "Great job, Wartortle. Take a rest now." I said.

I clipped the Pokeball back to my belt and looked at Magmar. I had been able to take care of Kyle's first two Pokemon with no problem, but his Magmar was proving to be a challenge. It had taken out two of my Pokemon in a row and now we were both left with only one. Not even Wartortle's water attacks were strong enough to beat this Fire type!

_This isn't going to be easy. I had a good streak going, but now it's tougher._ I thought. _How can I beat a Fire type Pokemon that's able to defeat a Water type Pokemon?!_

Taking a calming breath, I thought about what to do. _I knew that this wasn't going to be easy. Everyone here is going for the same thing. All I have to do is think of everything that I've learned throughout my journey and from watching dad. I can do this._

Pushing my nerves aside, I lowered my hand to my belt. I could hear my family from their seats in the stadium, shouting encouragement to me. Nodding to myself, I removed the Pokeball. It was time for another one of my Pokemon to make his debut.

"Golem, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball. Being on the Rock Battlefield, Golem would do well. And Rock types are resistant to fire.

"Magmar, use Smokescreen!"

"Golem, use Stone Edge!" I cried as the smoke covered the field. Magmar had taken some damage, thanks to Wartortle, so only a few hits and it should faint.

"No, Magmar!"

Looking, I saw Magmar standing up with more scratches covering its body.

"Now use Rock Throw!"

"Dodge and use Fire Spin!"

Magmar managed to avoid Golem's attack and rocks slammed into the field. Flames surrounded Golem as Fire Spin was used.

"Use Earthquake!" I cried. I stumbled and regained my balance as the Earthquake started. Magmar got hit and fell to the ground.

"Now use Rock Throw once more!" I cried. Up to this point, I had trained Golem in practicing techniques only, never battling. I had managed to train Golem to the point where he was able to jump high while using Rock Throw, making him more maneuverable, something that Jason hadn't taught Golem when he was his Pokemon.

"Magmar, Flamethrower!" The flames shot towards Golem and did little damage as Golem hit Magmar with his rocks. The two fell onto the field and Golem stood up. Magmar remained down on the ground.

"Magmar is unable to battle! Golem wins! The winner is Adam Ketchum!" the ref cried.

"Great job, Golem. Take a rest." I said, praising my Pokemon as I returned it.

Kyle looked over to me and gave a nod and walked away. When I walked outside of the stadium, I found my friends and family.

"Great job, Adam." my mom said, hugging me.

"Good job," my dad said, also hugging me.

"You're two and zero! Keep it up!" Michelle cried.

Jason nodded his head. "Golem did great in his first battle with you."

"You're doing great, Adam." Leaf said and Gary nodded his head in agreement.

Brittany smiled at me and said, "Great job," and gave me a quick hug.

"I'm going to head back to our room and rest for a little while. I'll be back in time to watch your battle though, Jason." I said.

* * *

><p><strong>Jason's POV<strong>

My second battle would be starting soon. Adam had battled earlier that day and now it was my turn. Today I was on the Ice battlefield.

"Good luck, Jason." Adam said.

"Good luck, you'll do great." Michelle said.

"Give it your all, Jason. And good luck." my mom said, hugging me briefly.

"Good luck and do your best." my dad said.

As I headed towards the battlefield, they went to their seats in the stands. I looked across to the other side at my opponent. Her name was Hayley, who looked to be my age. She had straight, light brown hair that fell to her waist and dark blue eyes. She was wearing a pair of jean cutoff shorts with black leggings underneath, a pink tank top, and pink and black hightops. I also saw a bracelet on her wrist with her Pokeballs attached to it, just like Michelle's.

As I waited for the battle to start, I looked at the field. This would be difficult. Pokemon can slip and slide around on the ice. So the best way of attacking would be from the air.

"The battle between Jason Oak and Hayley will now begin! Each trainer will use three Pokemon and the battle will be over when all of one trainer's Pokemon are unable to battle!"

"Fearow, go!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Jynx, let's go!" Hayley cried, tossing her Pokeball.

Jynx was an Ice type. Hayley had an advantage over a Flying Pokemon, but Fearow was faster than Jynx and had a lot more space in the air to maneuver than Jynx had on the ground.

"Fearow, use Agility!" I cried. If I used that first, Fearow's speed would be unbeatable. "Now use Aerial Ace!"

"Dodge it! Use Powder Snow!" Hayley cried out.

Using Agility had paid off. Fearow circled around and Jynx's attack was easily avoided. Jynx wasn't able to dodge Aerial Ace, since Fearow was a lot faster.

"Now use Peck!" I cried, since Fearow was still close to Jynx.

Hayley smirked. "Ice Punch, now!"

"Dodge it, Fearow!" I cried, knowing that it would be bad if that Ice Punch made contact.

Fearow managed to dodge...barely. He then swooped back it and used Peck. Looking at Jynx, I saw that it couldn't take much more.

"Use Ice Punch again!"

"Dodge it!"

Fearow couldn't dodge it this time and was hit.

"Aerial Ace, Fearow!" I cried and Fearow shot towards Jynx.

"Lovely Kiss!" Hayley screamed.

"Up and around!" I yelled to Fearow at the last minute. Fearow moved just in the nick of time, avoiding the Lovely Kiss. He zoomed up and over Jynx, striking from behind. I had never seen Fearow move that fast before! Jynx fell to the ground and fainted.

"Jynx is unable to battle. Fearow wins!"

Hayley returned her Pokemon and removed her next Pokeball.

"I have to say, using an Ice Pokemon on an icy battlefield and against a Flying Pokemon is a good strategy, but Fearow is a lot faster than Jynx. You can't hit what you can't catch." I said smugly to Hayley. I had to admit, I had a bit of my dad's smug, cocky attitude.

Hayley frowned at me in frustration. Her Jynx had been completely outmatched. "Butterfree, go!" she cried, tossing her Pokeball.

As Butterfree appeared, I couldn't help but wonder where my Butterfree was now and how it was doing since I released it. Was it happy being with Blair's Butterfree?

I had an advantage over Butterfree. Butterfree was a Bug Pokemon and Fearow was a Flying Pokemon.

"Fearow, use Peck!"

"Use Supersonic!" Hayley cried.

"Stop, Fearow!" I cried out desperately.

Fearow was unable to stop and the Supersonic hit.

"Snap out of it, Fearow!" I cried as Fearow flew around in a dazed state.

"Butterfree, use Poison Powder!"

"Dodge!"

Fearow couldn't dodge and the purple powder landed on him. Fearow cried out in pain as the poison took effect. He then lost some altitude and was flying lower towards the ground.

I had to end this before the poison sapped away all of Fearow's energy. "Fearow, use Aerial Ace!" Fearow had now snapped out of his confusion and flew towards Butterfree.

"Dodge it!" Hayley cried, but Fearow's superior speed over Butterfree was too great and the attack hit its mark.

"Use Stun Spore!" she yelled.

"Dodge!" I yelled.

Fearow flew to dodge, but the Agility had begun to wear off. Butterfree was above Fearow and the powder fell onto him, causing Fearow to lose altitude.

"Now finish this with Psybeam!" Fearow was unable to move because of Stun Spore and couldn't dodge. The attack was a direct hit and Fearow fainted.

"Fearow is unable to battle! Butterfree wins!"

As I removed my Pokeball to return Fearow, I realized that I had gotten overconfident. My dad had warned me not to do that, like he did at times when he had battled in the past. I had gotten overconfident in my advantage and it had backfired on me.

"Good job, Fearow. Take a well-deserved rest." I said.

I looked over at Hayley. She had a smug smirk on her face, just like I had had when I defeated Jynx. "So, I can't hit what I can't catch, huh?" she said to me in a proud voice. "Well, all I had to do was slow your Pokemon down with status ailments like confusion, poison, and paralysis, and then it's helpless to defend itself."

Oh, it was on now! Both of us had lost one Pokemon and from the looks of it, neither of us was willing to accept defeat!

All fired up, I removed my next Pokeball. The Pokeball that contained my most powerful Pokemon; Charizard, my first Pokemon.

"Charizard, go!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Use Fire Spin!" I cried, not wasting any time.

"Dodge it, Butterfree!" Hayley cried.

Butterfree wasn't able to dodge and was trapped in the fire vortex.

"Butterfree, break free using Psybeam!" Butterfree managed to make a small opening by attacking the flames and escaped. Nice trick, but not the best idea.

"Flamethrower, Charizard!" I cried.

"No!" Hayley cried and was unable to command Butterfree to dodge.

The attack hit Butterfree, whose burnt body fell from the sky.

"Butterfree is unable to battle! Charizard wins!"

Hayley returned her Pokemon and removed her final Pokeball. "Sneasel, let's do this!" Hayley cried, tossing her Pokeball.

"Another Ice Pokemon...against my Charizard? This will be over quickly." I said in surprise. "You have no idea how powerful my Charizard is."

"Don't be so sure." she replied.

_She has a plan or some trick up her sleeve. She doesn't seem at all worried about her Ice Pokemon facing a Fire Pokemon._ I thought to myself.

"Sneasel, use Agility!" Hayley cried.

"Use Fire Spin, Charizard!"

I watched as Sneasel easily dodged the attack without being commanded. Sneasel was skating along the ice and the Fire Spin missed...but with Agility added to its speed...Sneasel was incredibly fast!

"What was it that you said earlier? 'You can't hit what you can't catch?' Well, just try to hit Sneasel now! Sneasel can move very fast on ice and with Agility, it's even faster!" Hayley said, almost mocking me.

I growled in frustration. My competitive side was starting to flare. Though I did have to admit that our personalities were very similar, trying to show each other up in battle.

"Flamethrower!"

"Dodge it."

Hayley was calm and seemed unaffected. I was frustrated and angry. As the battle continued with me calling out attacks, none of them touched Sneasel.

_Think, Jason. Think! How can you get a hit in with a Pokemon this fast?!_

As I stood, looking at the field of ice and Sneasel skating around and Charizard flying above, I remembered something from one of the videos that I had seen. A trick that Adam's dad had used with his Charizard against my dad in the Johto Pokemon League.

_If I can't hit Sneasel, then I'll just hit everything else!_

"Charizard, use Flamethrower on the field!" I cried.

Hayley's eyes widened as the ice started melting from Charizard's fire. Soon, all of the ice was gone and the field was just all water. Sneasel was left standing in the middle on the last piece of ice, trapped with nowhere to go. Sneasel wasn't a Water Pokemon, so it couldn't swim.

"I couldn't hit Sneasel, so I just destroyed everywhere that it could run instead." I said matter-of-factly to Hayley. She just stared at me with shock and disbelief. She hadn't seen anything like that before!

"Charizard, use Flamethrower and end this battle!"

Hayley, unable to do anything, knowing that Sneasel's attacks couldn't do anything against a Flamethrower that powerful, watched as her Pokemon was blasted with fire and knocked off of the ice, falling into the water and sinking. Hayley quickly removed her Pokeball and returned Sneasel.

"Sneasel is unable to battle! Charizard wins! The winner is Jason Oak!"

"Great job, Charizard." I said as I returned my partner.

I walked to the other side of the field and stopped next to Hayley.

"Good battle. Your Sneasel is very fast." I said.

"Sneasel's my main partner so we work together better than my other Pokemon. You and your Pokemon did great. Nice trick you pulled there at the end to beat Sneasel. Good luck in the rest of the tournament." she said, holding her hand out.

I shook her hand and left the stadium. It was nice to see that despite our similar cocky attitudes when battling, we still respected each other.

I walked out of the stadium and met up with my friends and family. I was congratulated by everyone.

"You and Adam are still undefeated!" Michelle cried happily.

Nikki and Trevor then walked up and greeted us.

"Trevor has won both of his battles, too. You three are all undefeated so far!" she cried.

This was far from over. I knew that if it came down to me having to battle Adam or Trevor, it wasn't going to be easy. They were tough rivals and we were all going for the same goal. This was far from over.

**Author's Note: The Pokemon League continues as both Adam and Jason win their second battles, which were quite a bit tougher than their first ones. Adam wins with the help of his newest Pokemon; Golem, and Jason wins with the help of his oldest Pokemon, Charizard.**

**The Pokemon League continues with more battling in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	60. Trainer vs Coordinator

**Michelle's POV**

Nikki had invited us to watch Trevor's next battle in the Pokemon League and we had accepted. So far, Trevor was leading with all of the Pokemon left and his opponent had two Pokemon left.

As the battle continued, Trevor's first Pokemon fainted. As he returned it and lowered his hand to his belt, Nikki called out to him.

"Go, Trevor! You can do it!" Nikki shouted.

As Trevor released his second Pokemon, I looked at Nikki and asked, "Have you always cheered for Trevor like this in his battles? I mean, you two weren't exactly the best of siblings when we first met you."

"Well, I've always cheered for Trevor, even if he's never acknowledged it. He was always in the stands for my contests, mutely cheering me on and supporting me. Trevor may not have spoken any words of encouragement to me, but he never missed any of my contests. He was in the stands at every single one, even if it meant giving up time when he could have been training." Nikki replied.

"Wow, he may not have always shown it, but he does care about you and your goal to become a Top Coordinator, right?"

"Yep, just like Adam and Jason care for you and your goal to become a Top Coordinator. They've watched all of your contests too, right?"

"Yeah, they have."

"Trevor wins!" the ref announced.

"Wow...Trevor's really strong." Adam said as we left.

"Yeah...I didn't know that he battled like that." Jason added.

This was the first time that any of us had seen Trevor battle and Trevor didn't play around. Once outside of the stadium, we were waiting for Trevor to come out.

"Way to go, Trev!" Nikki cried once she spotted her brother.

"Thanks, Nikki." he replied.

"Good battle," Adam and Jason said.

"Thanks, and good luck in your battles."

We said goodbye to Trevor and Nikki, since Adam and Jason's battles were starting soon. Once again, Adam and Jason's battles were at the same time in different stadiums.

"Who's battle are you going to watch?" Adam asked, facing me.

"Yours again," I said, after thinking for a moment.

An unsurprised look came over Jason's face as I spoke.

_He looks so unsurprised with my answer. Is he mad at me?_ I wondered to myself as I followed Adam to the next stadium.

* * *

><p><strong>Adam's POV<strong>

Today I was battling on the Ice battlefield where Jason had battled Hayley yesterday. We found my parents and Brittany waiting by the entrance to the stadium.

"Who are you using?" my dad asked.

"I'm using Pidgeot, Charmeleon, and Pikachu. Jason had the right idea to attack from the air with the ice as the field and Charmeleon can melt the ice like his Charizard did, in case I face off against an Ice Pokemon.

I was wished good luck and they left to find seats. I headed inside and to my side of the field and waited. I was facing a girl named Tessa. She was in her mid-teens with dark purple hair pulled into a braid that fell over her shoulder, dark blue eyes, and her skin was tanned. She was wearing jean shorts that reached her thigh with rips in them, a black vest over a white tee, and black knee-high boots.

"The battle between Tessa and Adam Ketchum will now begin! The battle with be three-on-three and will be over when all Pokemon on one side are unable to battle. Begin!"

"Kirlia, come on out!" Tessa cried, tossing her Pokeball.

"Charmeleon, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Kirlia, use Magical Leaf!"

"Counter with Fire Spin!"

"Teleport!"

I watched as Kirlia vanished and Fire Spin easily burned through the leaves, but Kirlia appeared behind Charmeleon and hit him with another Magical Leaf. The first Magical Leaf attack had just been a distraction!

"Use Flamethrower!" I cried.

"Double Team!"

Flamethrower went through one of the copies and soon Charmeleon was surrounded.

_She's countering everything that I throw at her. She's almost battling like this is a contest. Was she a coordinator? Well, then it's time to use the techniques that I've seen from mom and Michelle to win. _I thought to myself.

"Magical Leaf, once more!"

"Use Fire Spin to burn them away!"

I watched as every Kirlia fired a Magical Leaf and then I spotted the real one. I didn't know how I could tell, it just flashed with a blue light for a split-second and in my mind, I just knew.

"Charmeleon, use Flamethrower to the left!" I cried. Charmeleon stopped using Fire Spin and used Flamethrower, hitting the original Kirlia and causing the others to disappear.

Tessa looked surprised and puzzled that I could tell right away which Kirlia was real. I was just as confused as she was.

"Now use Metal Claw!"

"Stop it with Psychic!"

Charmeleon was now outlined in blue and unable to move.

"Fight against it and use Flamethrower, Charmeleon! I know that you can do it!" I desperately called out. Charmeleon was struggling to fight against Psychic and didn't get to use Flamethrower before getting thrown into the ground. But Charmeleon stood up and immediately used Flamethrower, catching Tessa off-guard and Kirlia took the attack head-on.

Looking at Kirlia, I saw that after a few more hits, it would faint.

"Fire Fang, Charmeleon!" I cried, since Kirlia hadn't fully recovered from the Flamethrower.

"Teleport, quickly!" Tessa cried.

Charmeleon missed Kirlia as it vanished and appeared in the sky.

"Magical Leaf!"

"Use your counter shield, Charmeleon!" I cried.

Just like when we battled the Haunters and Gastly in Lavender Town, Charmeleon was protected from the attack.

"Now finish this, Charmeleon! Use Fire Fang!" I cried. Charmeleon quickly stopped spinning and ran towards Kirlia, who had landed on the ground.

"Dodge it!" Tessa cried. Kirlia spun out of the way at the last second. "Now use Psychic!"

"Flamethrower, quick!" My practice had paid off, Charmeleon was able to use Flamethrower before Kirlia could use Psychic.

"No!" Tessa cried as Kirlia fell to the ground.

"Kirlia is unable to battle. Charmeleon wins!"

Tessa returned her Pokemon and removed another Pokeball.

"Delcatty, let's go!" she cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Charmeleon, use Flamethrower!" I cried.

"Double Team!" Tessa cried.

Once again, Charmeleon was surrounded by copies. But this time, my mind couldn't figure out which one was the real one. Why?

"Shadow Ball!"

"Jump and then use Fire Spin!"

Charmeleon was able to dodge the attack and used Fire Spin. The copies disappeared as Fire Spin hit them. I kept looking for the original Delcatty, but I couldn't find it.

When I got down to the last one, I watched as the last Delcatty was hit and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"That's Substitute. So where's-" I started and Tessa smirked.

"Iron Tail, now!" Delcatty jumped and slammed into Charmeleon from behind.

"Incredible! Tessa managed to pull off a sneak attack!"

When had she ordered Delcatty to use Substitute? Unless using Double Team meant that she wanted Delcatty to use that, too. Impressive, I had to give her credit for that.

"Use Flamethrower!"

"Use Shadow Ball!"

The two moves collided with one another and canceled each other out. Looking at Charmeleon, I knew that he couldn't last much longer. The battle with Kirlia had weakened him and so had this one.

"Delcatty, use Shadow Ball again!"

"Flamethrower again!"

"Now use Iron Tail!"

Delcatty ran towards Charmeleon as he destroyed the Shadow Ball with Flamethrower. Delcatty jumped into the air and was coming towards Charmeleon with its tail, ready to slam it into his head.

"Fire Spin!" I yelled. Delcatty managed to slam its Iron Tail into Charmeleon's head, but Charmeleon didn't go down and used Fire Spin at close range, trapping Delcatty in the flames.

"Delcatty!" Tessa cried as her Pokemon burned in the fire.

When Fire Spin stopped, Delcatty was still standing, but cried out in pain as flames covered its body. Delcatty had gotten burned.

Charmeleon stood, panting and covered in scratches. "Char..." Charmeleon said, falling to the ground, fainting.

"Charmeleon is unable to battle. De-"

Delcatty cried as the flames covered its body again and it fell to the ground, also fainting.

"Delcatty is also unable to battle. It's a tie!"

"Thanks, Charmeleon. Rest now." I said as I returned my Pokemon.

"Pidgeot, let's show 'em!" I cried as I removed my next Pokeball and threw it.

"Swellow, let's go!" Tessa cried.

It would be an aerial battle between two Flying Pokemon.

"Swellow, use Quick Wing Attack!" Tessa cried.

"Use Quick Attack to dodge!" I cried.

Watching Swellow, I saw that Tessa had combined Quick Attack and Wing Attack into one move. But Pidgeot flew upwards and was able to avoid the attack.

"Now use Gust!" I cried.

"Ride it out! Then use Aerial Ace!"

"Air Slash now, Pidgeot!" I cried as Swellow sped towards him.

Swellow managed to avoid Air Slash while using Aerial Ace and slammed into Pidgeot, who lost some altitude.

"Gust!" I cried. Pidgeot regained height by using Gust to keep him from hitting the ground.

"Wing Attack, now!" I cried. Pidgeot shot towards Swellow.

"Dodge it!" Tessa cried, but Swellow was too slow and was hit.

"Double Team!" Tessa cried. Again? Did all of her Pokemon known Double Team?

"Now use Aerial Ace!" Every Swellow was using it. I tried to spot the real one.

Then I remembered a battle of my mom's that I had watched. Piplup had spun to gain speed and to avoid an attack.

"Spin and use Wing Attack!" I cried. As the Swellows approached, Pidgeot started to spin and managed to strike all of them with his wings.

"Now use Quick Attack!"

"Quick Attack as well, Swellow!"

Both Pokemon hit each other.

"Peck!" Tessa cried. Not being able to call anything out to Pidgeot, he took the attack head-on and Swellow wasn't letting up.

"Wing Attack!" Pidgeot managed to hit Swellow and Swellow stopped the Peck attacks. Neither Pokemon would be able to take much more.

"Aerial Ace!" we both shouted at the same time.

Both Pokemon flew towards one another and collided, fighting for dominance. A cloud of smoke appeared as the moves canceled each other out. I heard cries of pain come from the Pokemon. Which attack had landed or had they both landed?

Watching the smoke, both Pokemon appeared, but they were falling towards the field. They weren't flapping their wings. They hit the ice and fainted.

"Both Pidgeot and Swellow are unable to battle. All of Tessa's Pokemon are unable to battle. Which means that Adam Ketchum wins!" the ref announced.

Tessa returned her Pokemon as I removed my Pokeball.

"Thanks, Pidgeot. You did great." I said, attaching my Pokeball back to my belt. Pikachu hopped onto my shoulder and I walked across the field.

"Great battle, Tessa." I said, holding my hand out.

"Thanks. You too, Adam." she said, shaking my hand.

"Were you a coordinator?"

"Yes, I was, for about three years. But then I decided to try being a trainer for a change and it's really helped me become stronger by experiencing two different battling styles. This is my first Pokemon League challenge. You managed to counter my attacks and I give you credit for that. Not many trainers are able to counter contest techniques. Good luck in the rest of the tournament." she said and walked off.

I had managed to win my third battle and my opponent used to be a coordinator. Her Pokemon were also from Hoenn and I had faced mostly Kanto Pokemon up until this point, so I think that I did great.

I walked out of the stadium and found my family and friends.

"Great job!" Brittany cried, hugging me.

Michelle also hugged me and congratulated me. "That was amazing! You used contest techniques and beat her own." Michelle said, impressed.

"You did great, Adam. I'm proud of you for combining contests and battles to become a better trainer, just like your dad has done." my mom proudly said, hugging me.

I guess having a mom who was a coordinator and a friend who was a coordinator had paid off. Michelle had seen my techniques when practicing with her, but she had never seen me use contest and battle techniques together in a real battle.

Jason and his parents walked up.

"Did you win?" I asked.

"Yeah, I won my battle. My opponent nearly beat me, though." Jason replied.

Things were getting tougher now. Everyone wanted the title of Pokemon League Champion. Soon, I would possibly have to battle Jason or Trevor. And when that happened, if it did, it wouldn't be an easy battle. It would be the most challenging battle that I could experience.

**Author's Note: Things get tougher as the Pokemon League carries on. Adam and Jason see firsthand how strong their rival Trevor is. The boys have won three of their preliminary battles and are one win away from going to the top sixteen.**

**Find out if they can overcome their next challenge in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	61. The Fourth Round Rumble

I sat in the stands, watching Jason's battle. Jason was battling some guy and this was proving to be a tough battle. Jason had already beaten the first two of his opponent's Pokemon, but he had also lost Tangela and Fearow and was down to his final Pokemon, Golduck, who was facing off against Poliwrath. The battle wouldn't last much longer since both Pokemon were reaching their limits.

After a water battle for dominance, both Pokemon fell to the ground. The stadium had gone quiet, watching to see what was going to happen. Who had won? Who would win? Both trainers were tense as they looked at their Pokemon.

"Gol...duck!" Golduck cried, getting to his feet.

"Poliwrath is unable to battle! Golduck wins, which means Jason Oak is the winner!" the ref announced.

Jason visibly relaxed and praised Golduck before returning him. I followed everyone out of the stadium as we waited for Jason. I was going to battle next at the Grass battlefield, where Jason had battled yesterday.

"Way to go, Jason! You won your fourth battle!" Michelle cried.

"You made it into the top sixteen. Great battle." his dad, Gary, said.

Leaf hugged him and congratulated him and my parents did the same.

"Great battle, Jason. You're still undefeated." I said, walking over to him.

We then made our way over to the Grass battlefield.

"Good luck, Adam. You'll do great." Michelle said.

"You can do it, Adam." said Brittany.

My parents wished me good luck and they, Michelle, and Brittany left to find seats, leaving me and Jason alone.

"Hey, good luck with the battle. You'll be able to do it, Adam. You'll make it into the top sixteen. We've been through a lot together on our journey and there's nothing that we can't beat. You've got this in the bag." Jason said.

I nodded my head. "Thanks, Jason."

Jason nodded his head and headed towards the stands while I made my way onto the battlefield. I was facing off against a guy who was named Roy. He looked to be about a year older than myself, with dark red hair that was spiked and dark brown eyes. He was wearing a pair of jeans, a black and green jacket that was over a plain green shirt, and sneakers.

I had decided that I was going to use Venusaur and Haunter, since they had yet to battle in the Pokemon League. Plus, being on the Grass battlefield would give Venusaur a small advantage, being a Grass type.

"The battle between Adam Ketchum and Roy will now begin! The battle will be over when all three of the Pokemon on one side are unable to battle!"

"Tauros, go!" Roy cried, tossing his Pokeball.

"Venusaur, let's show 'em!" I cried, throwing my Pokeball.

"Use Take Down!" Roy cried.

"Stop Tauros with Vine Whip!" I cried.

Tauros was successfully stopped by Venusaur's vines wrapping around its horns. Tauros was raised into the air and slammed down onto the field.

"Razor Leaf!" I cried.

"Dodge it and use Zen Headbutt, Tauros!"

Tauros successfully dodged Razor Leaf and ran towards Venusaur.

"Dodge it!" I cried. Venusaur dodged. "Now use Razor Leaf again!" Venusaur turned and used Razor Leaf, successfully hitting Tauros.

"Horn Attack!" Roy cried, as Tauros was quick to recover.

"Dodge!"

Venusaur couldn't dodge in time and got hit.

"Vine Whip!" Vines wrapped around Tauros once more and it was slammed into the field once again. Tauros didn't get back up.

"Tauros is unable to battle! Venusaur wins!" the ref announced.

Roy returned his fallen Pokemon and enlarged his next Pokeball. "Charizard, go!" Roy cried, tossing the Pokeball.

I had a type disadvantage and his Charizard looked very powerful.

"Use Vine Whip!" I cried.

Roy smirked and looked at me. "A careless move. Use Flamethrower on the vines!" Roy cried.

"Hurry, Venusaur!" I cried.

Venusaur lifted Charizard into the air and was about to slam it into the ground when Charizard used Flamethrower, burning the vines and then hitting Venusaur directly. That one attack did a lot of damage.

"Use Wing Attack!"

"Get ready, Venusaur." I said. I waited until the right moment and then cried, "Vine Whip!" The vines wrapped around Charizard's wings and stopped the Wing Attack. Charizard was slammed into the ground.

"Solar Beam!" I cried, since Charizard was still recovering from Vine Whip. Venusaur launched the Solar Beam.

"Dodge it!" Charizard flew out of the way, successfully dodging Solar Beam.

"Finish this with Fire Blast!" Before I could call a command, Charizard blasted Venusaur with one of the strongest Fire attacks that I had ever seen. I flinched as Venusaur collapsed on the field and fainted.

"Venusaur is unable to battle! Charizard wins!" the ref cried.

I removed my Pokeball and returned Venusaur. "Thanks, you did great. Rest now, you've earned it."

"Haunter, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my next Pokeball.

"Use Flamethrower!"

"Dodge it, Haunter!"

I had a plan for Haunter. Haunter would be able to avoid Charizard's attacks thanks to something that my dad had told me. It was something that he had seen Fantina, the Gym Leader of Hearthome City, do in battle.

Roy kept calling out commands and Haunter was able to avoid almost all of Charizard attacks. Ghost Pokemon could float around freely in the air and move in a tricky way so there was no way for Charizard to be able to completely predict Haunter's movements. After launching many attacks, Charizard was starting to get tired.

"Fire Spin, now!" Roy cried.

"Dodge!" I cried, but Haunter was unable to dodge this time.

"Break out with Shadow Ball!" Haunter used Shadow Ball and an opening formed. Haunter had escaped the fiery vortex.

"Now use Shadow Punch!"

"Dodge!"

Charizard flew up in the air to dodge but Haunter disappeared and reappeared beside it, hitting Charizard with Shadow Punch.

"Now use Hypnosis!" I cried. But Charizard was able to avoid the attack and before I could command Haunter to dodge, Haunter was hit with a Flamethrower.

"Use Shadow Ball!"

"Deflect it!"

Charizard was able to hit the Shadow Ball away but Roy didn't know that it was just a distraction.

"Shadow Punch!"

"No!" Roy cried.

The diversion had worked! Haunter landed the Shadow Punch.

"Now use Hypnosis!" Charizard fell to the ground, asleep.

"Finish this! Use Dream Eater!" Haunter drained away energy from Charizard. Haunter was now healed and Charizard had woken up, but looked very weak.

"Use-" Roy started, but Charizard fell to the ground and fainted.

"Charizard is unable to battle! Haunter wins!" the ref cried.

Roy returned his Pokemon and removed his last Pokeball.

"Beedrill, go!" he cried, tossing it. "Use Pin Missile!"

"Dodge it and use Shadow Ball!" I cried.

Haunter vanished and reappeared behind Beedrill.

"Look out behind you!" Beedrill barely managed to dodge the Shadow Ball.

"Shadow Punch!"

"Poison Jab!"

The two moves collided with one another.

"Now Hypnosis!" I cried, since smoke had formed and Beedrill couldn't see Haunter. The smoke cleared and Beedrill was flying sleepily. I watched as it flew lower and lower.

"Dream Eater, Haunter." I said and Haunter began to drain away Beedrill's energy.

"Wake up!" Roy cried. Beedrill snapped awake, but Dream Eater had done a good amount of damage.

"Shadow Ball!"

"Dodge and use Agility and Poison Jab!"

Beedrill avoided the attack and quickly flew towards Haunter.

"Dodge it!" I cried. Haunter couldn't dodge in time. Looking at the Pokemon, I saw that Beedrill was still close.

"Shadow Punch!" I cried.

"Get away!"

Beedrill managed to dodge, thanks to Agility.

"Shadow Ball, and keep it up!" Haunter used Shadow Ball before vanishing and reappearing and using another one, meaning that Beedrill had no idea where the next attack was going to come from. Haunter kept doing this repeatedly and Beedrill couldn't dodge all of them and got hit a few times.

"Now use Shadow Punch to finish this." I said, since Beedrill was dazed. Haunter appeared beside Beedrill and attacked. Beedrill fainted and fell to the ground.

"Beedrill is unable to battle. Haunter wins! Adam Ketchum is the winner!" the ref cried.

"Great job, Haunter. Take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

Roy looked at me and nodded his head before walking off. As I made my way outside, I felt relief and happiness. I was going to the top sixteen. The real challenge would be starting now. It was going to be six-on-six, full team battles now and all battles would be taking place on the main battlefield in the Indigo Stadium. I had made it to the halfway point of the Pokemon League.

"Way to go, Adam! You did it!" Michelle cried happily.

Brittany hugged me.

"Great job, sweetie." my mom said.

"Good job, Adam. You've made it to the top sixteen." said my dad.

Jason's parents congratulated me and then Jason walked up.

"Good job, Adam. We're both in the top sixteen. Who knows what's going to happen next?" he said.

"Yeah,"

But in my mind, I had a dilemma. I had faced Roy's Charizard and Venusaur had gotten defeated. I had to figure out a way for Venusaur to fight against a Fire Pokemon like Charizard, because I may have to face another Charizard later, possibly Jason's. This was far from over.

**Author's Note: Adam and Jason have won all of their battles on the four different battlefields and have made it to the top sixteen in the tournament. The real challenge starts now.**

**How far will they be able to make it? Are either of them capable of winning the entire tournament? Find out as the Pokemon League continues in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	62. The Semifinal, Part 1

**Adam's/Normal POV**

"Adam Ketchum is the winner!" the ref announced.

I did it. I had won my battle and I was going to move on to the top four. Jason was too, since he had won his battle earlier that day.

I returned my Pokemon and headed out of the stadium. I walked outside, over to my family and friends, where my mom hugged me.

"You were great, Adam. You're in the top four." she said, releasing me.

"Way to go!" Michelle cried.

"You two both accomplished something that neither of us were able to do when we challenged the Pokemon League for the first time." Gary said proudly.

"You two have given it your all. If you two win your next battles, you'll face each other in the finals." my dad said.

If we were to face each other, we knew that it wouldn't be an easy battle. It would be the most challenging battle ever for both of us. We both knew each others' battling style and almost everything about each other when battling. It would be a good battle and we would both give it our all, but who would win?

"Well, let's try to make it to the finals and we'll give it our all." Jason said.

"Yeah, I'll give it my all as long as you do too, Jason." I replied.

"You know that I will."

"It was bound to happen, though. You always battle your rivals at least once on your journey." my mom said.

"Exactly. We've all done it and we remained friends no matter what the outcome was." my dad added.

_If they have to face each other...then who will I cheer for? They're both my friends and I want them both to succeed in their goals, but only one of them will. Whoever loses will be left watching the other receive the title if they face each other...What will I do? Cheer for both? Yeah, I'll cheer for them both. But one of them will win and I'll be happy for them and want to congratulate them...but I'll also be sad for whoever loses. Man...what am I going to do if that happens? _Michelle thought to herself.

We started walking to the Pokemon Center, since my Pokemon needed to be healed. After that battle, they needed a well-deserved rest.

"Hello, how may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Can you heal my Pokemon?" I asked.

"Certainly," she said and placed the tray on the counter.

As I placed my Pokeballs in the tray and Pikachu hopped onto the counter, I heard talking on the screen for tomorrow's battles.

"Here's the lineup for tomorrow's battles."

The pictures flipped over. Jason was facing a guy named Dean. I was facing...Trevor?!

_I know that this battle won't be easy. I've seen Trevor battle before and he's a lot stronger now. I know that he doesn't mess around. He's a serious and powerful trainer. I'm going to have to come up with a lot of different techniques to beat him._ I thought.

"Well, it looks like you two are facing one another." a familiar voice said.

Turning around we saw Nikki and Trevor.

"The last battle that we had was a while ago and you didn't defeat any of my Pokemon. You didn't beat me then so you have no hope of beating me now, since I've gotten stronger since then." Trevor said to me.

"Well, I've gotten a lot stronger too, Trevor. Don't count me out just yet." I replied.

"I hope that you give it your all. I hope that you're a challenge."

_It'll be like a rematch between them. Both Adam and Trevor have gotten stronger since that battle where Adam lost badly. A lot has happened since then, too. Trevor respects Adam as a trainer now and he knows that Adam is a serious trainer and won't be easy to defeat anymore._ Nikki thought.

* * *

><p><strong>Jason's POV<strong>

I stood, waiting for the battle to begin. This was it. The battle that would determine if I went on to the finals.

I was going up against a guy named Dean. He looked about thirteen with silver hair that fell to his shoulders and blue eyes. He was wearing a pair of jean shorts, a black jacket with a white stripe going down the arms over a white shirt with black sneakers.

"The semifinal battle between Jason Oak and Dean will now begin! This will be a six-on-six battle and the match will be over when all of the Pokemon on one side are unable to battle! Battle begin!" the ref cried.

"Golduck, go!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

I saw Dean smirk as he removed his Pokeball. "Let's go, Luxray!" he cried.

I frowned. I had the disadvantage, but I could do this. I had trained with Golduck against Adam's Pikachu and Michelle's Jolteon.

"Use Spark!" Dean cried. Blue sparks appeared around Luxray's body and then a blue light surrounded its body. Luxray started running towards Golduck.

"Jump!" I cried. Golduck jumped up and Luxray landed on the ground.

"Use Aqua Tail!" I cried.

"Dodge it!"

Luxray avoided the attack but I wasn't done yet!

"Aqua Jet!"

"Spark, quick!"

The two moves collided with one another and fought for dominance. They both canceled one another out, creating smoke.

"Thunder Fang!" Luxray jumped out of the smoke and landed a direct hit on Golduck before I could call out a command. Sparks lingered on Golduck as it fell to one knee. That one hit did a number on Golduck.

_I can't risk Golduck getting hurt any more._ I thought as I removed my Pokeball.

"Golduck, return!" I cried.

"And Jason calls Golduck back. Who will his next Pokemon be?"

_All of my Pokemon can attack Luxray and not get critically hurt like Golduck. Hmm..._

"Machamp, go!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"And Machamp is Jason's second Pokemon!"

"Use Hyper Beam!" Dean cried.

"Dodge and use Low Kick!"

Hopefully, I could get this distraction to work. Machamp successfully dodged the Hyper Beam and was running towards Luxray.

"Jump and use Thunder Fang!"

"Karate Chop!" I cried.

Machamp raised its hand and hit Luxray, sending it backwards towards Dean.

"Now use Low Kick!" I cried, since Luxray had yet to recover fully. Machamp hit Luxray head-on and Luxray fell to the ground and fainted.

"Luxray is unable to battle. Machamp wins!" the ref announced.

Dean returned his Pokemon and removed his next Pokeball. "Espeon, let's go!" he cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Future Sight!" he cried.

"Machamp, use Low Kick!" I cried.

"Double Team!"

Machamp was surrounded by multiple Espeons.

"Now use Psybeam!"

"Deflect it with Karate Chop!" I cried.

The two moves fought against each other and soon canceled one another out.

"Use Low Kick!"

"Stop Machamp with Confusion!"

Machamp was stopped in its tracks.

"Now use Psybeam!"

"No!" I cried, knowing that Machamp was helpless.

Machamp cried out as Psybeam hit directly. I opened my mouth to call out an attack, but stopped when Future Sight occurred. Machamp fell to the ground and fainted. I had forgotten that it had used Future Sight first. A careless mistake.

"Machamp is unable to battle. Espeon wins!" the ref cried.

"Great job, Machamp. Take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

I looked at Espeon. Espeon was a Psychic type and weak against Dark types. If I used Haunter, I could use Dark Pulse but Haunter was weak against Psychic types...

I removed my Pokeball. I knew that Haunter could do this. I just had to use some techniques that I'd seen used before.

"Haunter, go!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Really? You're using Haunter? I thought this was going to be a challenge." Dean taunted.

He almost sounded like Hayley, a girl that I had battled earlier in the tournament. He sounded cocky, like he knew that he was going to win. That wasn't going to happen.

"Oh, it'll be a challenge. Trust me."

"Use Psybeam!" Dean cried.

"Haunter, dodge it!"

Haunter vanished and reappeared to the left of Espeon.

"Beside you! Use Psybeam once more!"

"Haunter, keep it up!"

Espeon was standing still now, looking in every direction. Haunter kept reappearing and Espeon couldn't place where it was.

"Espeon, calm down. It's okay."

"Shadow Ball, now!" I cried. Haunter appeared above Espeon.

"Above you! Double Team, quick!"

Espeon couldn't avoid the Shadow Ball quickly enough.

I smirked. "Dark Pulse!" Espeon was hit with the super effective Dark attack.

"Now use Hypnosis, Haunter!"

"Psybeam!"

"Haunter, stop!"

Haunter got hit with Psybeam, unable to stop.

"Use Psybeam once more!"

"Dark Pulse!"

The two moves collided with one another and began fighting for dominance. Two cries were heard and smoke appeared. As the smoke cleared, both Pokemon were on the ground.

"Both Pokemon are unable to battle. It's a tie!" the ref cried.

"Great job, take a rest now." I said as I returned Haunter.

"Piloswine, go!" Dean cried, tossing his Pokeball.

"Charizard let's go!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball. It was time for me to start taking control of this battle for a change.

"Use Flamethrower, Charizard!"

"Dodge it!"

Piloswine managed to avoid the attack.

"Use Blizzard!"

"Counter with Flamethrower!"

Flamethrower slammed into Piloswine after easily melting the Blizzard.

"Return." Dean said as he removed another Pokeball.

"Buizel, go!" he cried, tossing the Pokeball.

"Use Water Gun!"

"Dodge it!"

Charizard dodged but he wasn't out of danger yet!

"Use Sonic Boom!" Buizel flipped and Sonic Boom hit Charizard before I could command him to dodge.

"Now use Aqua Jet, Buizel!"

"Grab Buizel and use Seismic Toss, Charizard!" Charizard managed to grab Buizel, stopping Aqua Jet and flew into the air.

"Water Gun!" I watched as the Water Gun hit Charizard in the face, causing him to release Buizel, who was falling towards the ground.

"Aqua Jet!" Buizel headed towards the field and before it would slam into the ground, it flipped and landed on the ground. That was impressive. I hadn't landed a single hit on Buizel yet.

"Fire Spin!" Buizel became trapped. "Now use Flamethrower!" The Flamethrower headed towards the fire vortex and hit it before going through it and hitting Buizel directly.

"Water Gun!" A hole was formed and Buizel got out. "Aqua Jet!"

"Grab Buizel again!" I cried. When Buizel was near, Charizard grabbed it. I wasn't going to risk another Seismic Toss, though.

"Fire Fang, quick!" Charizard landed another direct hit on Buizel and released it.

"Water Gun!" Dean cried once Buizel had recovered.

"Dodge it!"

Charizard dodged, but then...

"Now use Aqua Jet!" Buizel shot into the air, following Charizard.

"Dodge!" Charizard couldn't dodge in time.

"Now use Ice Punch!" Buizel flipped and used Ice Punch on Charizard's wing. Charizard was falling towards the ground. The ice was spreading quickly across his wing.

"Flamethrower on the ice." I said once Charizard was back on the ground. Charizard was able to fly again.

"Aqua Jet!"

"Hurry, Charizard! Dodge!"

Charizard managed to dodge the Aqua Jet.

"Sonic Boom!" Charizard was hit before I could do anything.

"Water Gun!"

"No!" I cried. Charizard fell to the ground. He had fainted.

"Charizard is unable to battle. Buizel wins!" the ref cried.

"Thank you, Charizard. You did great and you deserve a rest." I said, returning my partner.

I removed my next Pokeball. "Tangela, go!" I cried, tossing it.

"Use Vine Whip!"

"Dodge!"

Buizel wasn't able to dodge in time and was slammed into the ground.

"Now use Poison Powder!" I cried, since Buizel hadn't recovered yet. Buizel cried out as the poison took effect.

"Use Ice Punch!"

"Dodge it, Tangela!"

Tangela managed to dodge.

"Vine Whip once more!" I cried. Buizel was grabbed and slammed into the ground. Buizel cried out as the poison did its job. Buizel struggled and got up.

"Bui..." it said, falling back down onto the ground.

"Buizel is unable to battle. Tangela wins!" the ref cried.

Dean returned his Pokemon and removed his next Pokeball. "Nidorino, go!" he cried, tossing it.

"Use Toxic Spikes!" he cried. Tangela cried out as the poison took its toll, since Poison attacks were strong against Grass Pokemon.

"Vine Whip!" I cried.

"Dodge and use Poison Sting!"

"Dodge, Tangela!"

Both Pokemon managed to dodge the attacks.

"Use Fury Attack!"

"Get ready, Tangela. Sleep Powder!" I cried when Nidorino was close.

"No!" Dean cried as Nidorino fell to the ground, fast asleep.

"Now use Giga Drain." I commanded. Nidorino's energy was taken. "And now use Vine Whip." I winced when Nidorino was slammed into the ground with the vines.

"Wake up, Nidorino!" Nidorino's eyes opened and it stood up. Its breathing was labored and it was covered in scratches. A few more attacks and it would be done.

"Use Poison Jab!"

"Dodge it!"

Tangela wasn't able to dodge in time.

"Vine Whip!" I cried, since Tangela was still standing after the attack. Nidorino fell to the ground after that attack.

"Nidorino is unable to battle. Tangela wins!" the ref cried.

Looking at Tangela, I knew that it couldn't take much more.

"Rapidash, go! Use Fire Spin!" Dean cried, not wasting any time.

"Dodge!"

Tangela couldn't dodge, since it was weak and took a direct hit.

"Tangela is unable to battle. Rapidash wins!" the ref cried.

"Thanks, Tangela. Take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

"Golduck, go!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball. When Golduck hit the field, the Toxic Spikes did their job and Golduck faltered slightly.

"Use Hydro Pump!"

"Use Agility to dodge!"

Hydro Pump missed.

"Now use Flame Wheel!"

"Aqua Jet!" I cried.

Both Pokemon headed towards each other. The two moves collided with one another and created steam.

"Aqua Tail, quick!" I cried, taking advantage of the steam cover. Rapidash cried out as it was struck.

"Bounce up!"

"Use Water Pulse skywards!" I cried.

Water Pulse followed Rapidash and hit it.

"Dodge!" I cried, seeing Rapidash coming back towards the ground. Golduck couldn't dodge in time and got hit.

"Hydro Pump!"

"Fire Spin!"

The two moves collided with one another and fought for dominance. Steam was made again.

"Aqua Jet!" I cried. Golduck shot towards Rapidash and I heard it cry out.

"Rapidash is unable to battle. Golduck wins!" the ref cried.

"Piloswine, go!" Dean cried, tossing his Pokeball. "Ice Fang!"

"Dodge!" I cried.

Golduck couldn't dodge in time and ice started covering its body.

"Now use Powder Snow!"

I couldn't tell Golduck to dodge, since one of its legs had frozen. Golduck fell and fainted.

"Golduck is unable to battle. Piloswine wins!" the ref cried.

"Great job, Golduck. Take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

I removed my final Pokeball. I would be at a disadvantage, but I knew that my Pokemon could beat Piloswine.

"And Jason is down to his final Pokemon! Who will it be?"

I enlarged my Pokeball and tossed it. "Let's go, Fearow!" I cried.

"Agility!" I would need to have speed on my side. Thankfully, Charizard's Flamethrower had done a good amount of damage to Piloswine earlier.

"Aerial Ace!" I cried.

"Dodge, Piloswine! Use Powder Snow."

But Aerial Ace hit before Piloswine could do anything.

"Now use Peck, Fearow!" Thanks to Agility, Fearow was a lot quicker. Peck hit the mark.

"Ice Fang!" Fearow was too close and got hit by the attack. The ice was going to spread to Fearow's wings and if that happened, it would be over.

"Use Aerial Ace, quick!" I cried. Fearow flew towards Piloswine and landed the attack, but the ice had spread to its wing. Fearow fell and landed on the field.

"Bang the wing against the ground, Fearow. Break the ice. You can do it!"

"Use Ice Fang." I smirked. Piloswine was close enough for Fearow to attack.

"Fury Attack!" I cried. Fearow was quick and used the attack. Piloswine fell to the ground and fainted.

"Piloswine is unable to battle. Fearow wins! Which means Jason Oak wins!" the ref cried.

I did it. I had won. I was going to the finals!

"Thanks, Fearow. You were great. Take a well-deserved rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

I had managed to make it to the finals, something that my dad hadn't done when he entered his first Pokemon League tournament. Now all that was left to find out was who I was facing. Would I face Trevor or Adam? Either way, I knew that it wouldn't be easy.

**Author's Note: The Pokemon League is nearing its end as Jason is moving on to the finals. He will face the winner of the battle between Adam and Trevor.**

**In the next chapter, Adam will face his most difficult rival for a shot against Jason in the Pokemon League finals. Who will triumph? Who will emerge victorious in the Pokemon League?**

**Find out in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	63. The Semifinal, Part 2

It was time. My battle was going to start at any moment. I was going up against Trevor, who, besides Jason, was the strongest rival that I had. I looked across the field at Trevor. He nodded towards me and I did the same.

"The semifinal battle between Adam Ketchum and Trevor will now begin! This will be a six-on-six battle and the match will be over when all Pokemon on one side are unable to battle. Battle begin!" the ref cried.

"Pidgeot, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Raichu, go." Trevor said, tossing his Pokeball.

I had the disadvantage. But I could get past this and so could Pidgeot.

"Use Thunderbolt, Raichu." Trevor commanded.

"Dodge and use Agility!" I cried.

Pidgeot flew out of the way at the last second and managed to dodge.

"Now use Quick Attack!"

"Use Thunderbolt on the field."

I had seen this before. My dad and many other trainers had used this as a counterattack. Pidgeot got hit by the pieces of the broken field and fell towards the ground.

"Now use Body Slam."

Pidgeot hadn't recovered yet and couldn't move in time and was pinned to the ground. I had to figure out a way for Pidgeot to escape, but how?! Then I remembered something from my past.

_"That was a good comeback to get Gastrodon off of Staraptor, using Close Combat. Body Slam isn't a move that you want your Pokemon to be stuck in?" my eight-year-old self questioned._

_"That's right. Body Slam is a move that can get you in a tight spot." my dad replied._

"That's it! Bang your wings against the field, Pidgeot!" I cried.

"Use Thunderbolt, Raichu."

Pidgeot cried out as the electricity hit and did a lot of damage. Pidgeot laid on the field, unable to battle any longer.

"Pidgeot is unable to battle. Raichu wins!" the ref cried.

I removed my Pokeball and returned my Pokemon. "Thank you, rest now." I said as I attached my Pokeball back to my belt.

"Pidgeot put up a good fight, but couldn't manage to beat Raichu. Who will be Adam's next Pokemon?"

Who could I use? I hadn't managed to land one hit on Raichu.

"Pi! Pika!" Pikachu cried.

Of course! Pikachu would be faster than Raichu. In the battle with Pidgeot, Raichu hadn't moved a lot. Maybe Trevor had done what Lt. Surge had done: evolve his Pikachu too soon, so it didn't know the attacks that it could only learn as a Pikachu.

"Pikachu, let's show 'em!" I cried. Pikachu ran onto the field and waited.

"Raichu, use Mega Punch." Trevor commanded.

"Volt Tackle, Pikachu!" I cried.

Pikachu ran towards Raichu in a streak of electricity and the two moves collided and smoke was created, with a few sparks, too.

"Iron Tail!" I cried.

"Dodge!"

Raichu couldn't dodge in time and was sent skidding backwards from Iron Tail.

"Now use Quick Attack!" Raichu, still fazed from the Iron Tail hit, got hit by Quick Attack and shook its head, recovering.

"Use Mega Punch!"

"Quick Attack!"

The two moves collided, dead even.

"Iron Tail!" Pikachu spun and quickly slammed its tail on Raichu's head. Raichu stumbled back and shook its head.

"Use Quick Attack, again." Raichu just stood waiting as Pikachu sped towards it.

"Body Slam, now!"

"No!"

Pikachu was pinned.

Neither of us had used any Electric attacks because both Pokemon were Electric types, but if Pikachu happened to be stronger or vice versa, then the other would be hurt. I had to take a chance.

"Thunderbolt!" I cried. Pikachu let out a Thunderbolt and the field broke up and some of it hit Raichu. Raichu cried out and got off of Pikachu. Raichu wouldn't last much longer. It was breathing heavily and it was covered in scrapes.

"Hyper Beam!" Trevor cried.

"Thunderbolt" I cried.

As the Hyper Beam neared Pikachu, Pikachu released a Thunderbolt. The two moves were now in a battle of dominance. They both exploded and smoke covered the field.

"Agility and then Iron Tail!" I cried. The smoke hadn't cleared yet and we couldn't see what was happening.

"Rai! Raichu..."

The smoke cleared and Raichu was lying on the field.

"Raichu is unable to battle. Pikachu wins!" the ref cried.

"What a battle! Pikachu proved to be stronger than its evolved form!"

Trevor returned his Raichu and removed his next Pokeball. "Graveler, go." he said, tossing his Pokeball.

"Pikachu, come back." I said. Pikachu ran back over to me. I couldn't use Pikachu because none of his attacks would work on a Rock/Ground Pokemon.

"Wartortle, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"I had a feeling that you were going to use Wartortle." Trevor said to me.

"Use Hydro Pump, Wartortle!" I cried.

"Dodge it and use Rollout."

Graveler managed to dodge and rolled towards Wartortle.

"Jump up, Wartortle! And then use Water Pulse!" I cried. Wartortle leapt into the air and avoided Graveler. Graveler stopped rolling and stood up where Wartortle had been standing.

"Dodge!" Trevor cried. But Graveler couldn't dodge the attack and Water Pulse slammed into it.

"Now use Hydro Pump!" I cried when Wartortle landed back on the ground.

"Earthquake!"

As the ground started to shake, Wartortle was unable to use Hydro Pump.

"Rock Throw, now!" Wartortle had just recovered from Earthquake. I called out for it to dodge and Wartortle was unable to dodge. Wartortle stood back up, covered in scratches and breathing heavily. Neither Pokemon would last much longer.

"Use Rapid Hydro Spin!" I cried. Wartortle started using Rapid Spin and then used Hydro Pump at the same time. Wartortle was a spinning shell that was shooting water. Graveler was pounded with wave after wave of water. Wartortle then popped out of his shell and used Hydro Pump one more time, hitting Graveler directly. But Graveler was still standing!

"Rock Throw!" Trevor cried.

"Retreat!" I cried.

Wartortle withdrew into his shell as the rocks fell around it.

"Finish this with Water Pulse!" I cried. Wartortle popped out of his shell and used Water Pulse.

"Dodge it!" Graveler went to dodge, but was unable to. Graveler stood still before falling to the ground.

"Graveler is unable to battle. Wartortle wins!" the ref cried.

Trevor returned his Pokemon and removed his next Pokeball. "Ninetales, go." he said, tossing it.

What was he up to? Water Pokemon were strong against Fire Pokemon.

"Use Confuse Ray, Ninetales." Wartortle became confused. "Now use Quick Attack."

"Dodge it, Wartortle."

Since Wartortle was confused, he didn't try to dodge.

"Now use Flamethrower."

"Hydro Pump!"

Wartortle didn't attack and got hit by the Flamethrower.

"Wartortle, snap out of it!" I cried.

"Finish this, Ninetales. Use Quick Attack."

"Dodge it, Wartortle!"

Wartortle shook his head and managed to dodge. Wartortle wasn't confused anymore!

"Use Water Pulse!" I cried.

"Dodge and use Quick Attack!"

Ninetales managed to dodge and before I could command Wartortle to dodge, Ninetales slammed into him. Wartortle cried out and fell to the ground.

"Wartortle is unable to battle. Ninetales wins!" the ref cried.

"You did great, Wartortle. Take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon. Even at a type disadvantage, Trevor was able to win by confusing Wartortle. I would have to watch out for that for the rest of the battle.

"Golem, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my next Pokeball. Rock Pokemon are resistant to fire.

"Ninetales, return." Trevor said as he removed another Pokeball.

"And Trevor calls Ninetales back! Who will his next Pokemon be?"

"Starmie, go." he said, tossing his Pokeball.

I frowned. I now had the disadvantage.

"I had a feeling that you were going to use Golem." Trevor said to me. He had this all planned out! He had watched my battles in the Pokemon League and learned to prepare for my team! He had planned to get me to use Golem so that I wouldn't be able to defeat his Fire Pokemon!

"You had a plan." I said.

"That's right. Let's see how you do." he replied.

I knew that Trevor was going to be tough, but not this tough!

"Starmie, use Water Gun."

"Earthquake!" I cried, using his own counter strategy against him.

Water Gun was prevented as Starmie was thrown off-balance.

"Use Rapid Spin!"

"Rock Blast!"

Pummeling rocks bounced off of Starmie as it spun quickly towards Golem, before slamming into him. But since it was a Normal attack, it didn't do much damage against a Rock Pokemon like Golem.

"Use Water Gun!"

"Dodge!"

Golem couldn't dodge the attack in time.

I removed my Pokeball. "Golem, return." I said, attaching the Pokeball back to my belt. Golem was fighting a losing battle with water.

I looked down at Pikachu and said, "You ready, Pikachu?"

"Pika!" Pikachu cried, running onto the field.

"Use Swift!"

"Thunderbolt!"

The Thunderbolt blasted the Swift and headed towards Starmie.

"Dodge!" Trevor yelled. Starmie managed to dodge.

"Use Quick Attack!"

"Rapid Spin, Starmie."

Starmie spun over Pikachu and Pikachu stood on the other side, waiting. Starmie was heading towards Pikachu, still using Rapid Spin.

"Thunderbolt!" I cried. The Thunderbolt hit Starmie head-on, making Starmie a spinning star of electricity. Starmie fell to the ground, its gem blinking, meaning that it was weak.

"Volt Tackle!" I cried. Pikachu slammed into Starmie and its gem was broken. Starmie had fainted.

"Starmie is unable to battle. Pikachu wins!" the ref announced.

Trevor returned his Pokemon. "Ninetales, I need you again." Trevor said, tossing his Pokeball.

"Pikachu, come back." I said as I removed my next Pokeball.

"Golem, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing the Pokeball. "Golem, use Rock Blast!"

"Dodge it, Ninetales." Trevor commanded.

Ninetales managed to dodge the attack.

"Confuse Ray," Golem became confused.

"Golem, snap out of it!" I cried.

"Use Quick Attack!"

"Dodge, Golem!"

Golem didn't hear me and got hit, but not badly.

"Golem, snap out of it." Golem cried out his name and was no longer confused.

"Rock Throw!" I cried.

"Dodge with Quick Attack."

Ninetales managed to dodge the attack and Golem made a crater in the field.

"Rock Blast,"

"Safeguard!"

The attack was blocked. I wouldn't be able to attack.

"Use Quick Attack!"

"Dodge it!"

Golem couldn't dodge in time. Ninetales was a lot quicker. Golem wouldn't last much longer. His battle with Starmie had done a lot of damage.

"Confuse Ray!"

"No!" I cried as Golem became confused once more.

"Earthquake! You can do it!" I cried, hoping that Golem wouldn't hurt himself. Golem did manage to attack Ninetales. Both Pokemon were reaching their limits.

"Quick Attack!" Trevor cried.

"Dodge it!"

Golem just stood still, unable to dodge because of his confused state.

"Golem..." Golem said, falling to the ground.

"Golem is unable to battle. Ninetales wins!" the ref cried.

"Thank you, Golem. Take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

"Both Adam and Trevor are down to their final three Pokemon!"

Who could I use to fight against Ninetales? I lowered my hand to my Pokeball belt and removed the Pokeball.

"Haunter, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball. I had a plan.

"Haunter, use Hypnosis!" Trevor frowned as Ninetales fell asleep.

"Now use Dream Eater!" I cried. Ninetales laid on the ground as its energy was drained.

"Ninetales is unable to battle. Haunter wins!" the ref cried. One last attack was all that I had needed to win.

Trevor returned his Pokemon and removed another Pokeball. "Haunter, go." he said tossing it.

Two Ghost Pokemon? Sucker Punch would be the strongest move that I could use against it.

"Haunter, use Sucker Punch!" I cried.

"Dodge it."

Trevor's Haunter managed to dodge.

"Dark Pulse!" Trevor cried. His Haunter appeared beside my own and before I could command Haunter to dodge, the attack hit directly.

"Use your Shadow Balls, Haunter!" I cried.

"Dodge it,"

Trevor's Haunter managed to dodge the multiple Shadow Balls.

"Now use Payback." Trevor commanded.

"Vanish!" I cried.

My Haunter vanished into thin air right before Trevor's Haunter could land its attack.

"Sucker Punch!" I cried.

"Dark Pulse, behind you, quick!" Trevor cried as my Haunter appeared beside his Pokemon.

The moves collided and created smoke.

"Sucker Punch!" I cried. I heard a Haunter cry out and when the smoke cleared, both Haunters were hurt.

"Dark Pulse!" Trevor cried. Before I could call out for Haunter to dodge, the attack was hitting it. Haunter fell towards the field and landed.

"Adam's Haunter is unable to battle. Trevor's Haunter wins!" the ref cried.

"Thanks, Haunter. Take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon. Since Trevor's Haunter was reaching its breaking point, it wouldn't last much longer.

"Pikachu, you're up." I said. Pikachu ran onto the field. I could pull off the technique that my dad had done when he had battled Fantina. I had used the technique when I had captured Haunter in the first place in Lavender Town. Pikachu could do this.

"Use Dark Pulse!"

"Thunderbolt, Pikachu!" I cried.

After countless counters and attacks, both Pokemon were reaching their final limits. I had managed to keep Haunter from vanishing thanks to the Counter-Shield.

"Shadow Ball, Haunter."

"Iron Tail!"

Pikachu hit the Shadow Ball and made it burst.

"Use Dark Pulse!"

"Dodge and use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu dodged and launched the Thunderbolt.

"Dodge, Haunter." But Haunter couldn't dodge in time and was engulfed by the electricity.

"Haunter is unable to battle. Pikachu wins!" the ref cried.

Trevor returned his Pokemon and removed his last Pokeball.

"Trevor is down to his final Pokemon!"

"Hypno, go." he said, tossing the Pokeball.

"Psyshock!" Trevor cried.

"Thunderbolt!"

"Stop it with Psychic." said Trevor.

I stared in shock as Thunderbolt was stopped. Trevor had tricked me.

"Now use Psychic." Pikachu was outlined in blue and was struggling to get free. Hypno raised its hands and Pikachu was sent flying into the wall.

"Pikachu!" I cried, running over.

"Pikachu is unable to battle. Hypno wins!" the ref cried.

I knelt down next to Pikachu and picked him up.

"Pika..."

"You did great, Pikachu. Take a rest." I said softly as I laid Pikachu on the ground next to me.

"Who will Adam's final Pokemon be?"

I removed my last Pokeball. "Charmeleon, let's show 'em!" I cried, tossing my Pokeball.

"Psyshock, Hypno."

"Dodge and use Flamethrower!" I cried.

Flamethrower managed to hit Hypno.

"Future Sight, Hypno."

This wasn't good. I needed to end this quickly. I remembered what had happened with Jason in his battle. He had gotten caught off-guard by Future Sight. It had looked like he had forgotten about Future Sight being used.

"Fire Spin!" I cried.

"Dodge it! Then use Psyshock!"

"Flamethrower and spin!"

Charmeleon was protected from Psyshock by his fire.

"Hypnosis!" Trevor cried. Charmeleon fell asleep. I watched as Future Sight came and hit him.

"Wake up!" I cried. I knew that when Charmeleon did wake up, a lot of damage would be done. Looking at Hypno, I saw that it wasn't doing that good, either.

"Use Psyshock!"

"Wake up and use Fire Spin!" I cried.

Charmeleon's eyes snapped opened and he used Fire Spin. Hypno became trapped in the fiery vortex.

"Use Psychic and get out."

Perfect! That's just what I wanted! "Flamethrower!" I cried. Hypno was hit directly with the attack and stumbled back.

"Now use Fire Fang!" Charmeleon ran towards Hypno, who was still recovering. Before Trevor could command Hypno to dodge, Fire Fang had hit. Hypno cried out as flames covered its body and it fell to the ground.

"Hypno is unable to battle. Charmeleon wins! Which means Adam Ketchum is the winner!" the ref cried and the crowd screamed in joy.

Trevor returned his Pokemon.

"Thanks, Charmeleon. Take a rest." I said, returning my Pokemon.

I couldn't believe it. I had won against Trevor, a rival that I had never beaten before now. I was going to the finals and facing my best friend, Jason. The challenge was far from over, he would be my toughest test of all.

I looked up and saw Trevor walking towards me.

"Congratulations, Adam. That was a great battle. I knew that you weren't going to be easy to defeat and you proved it to be right. You finally beat me."

"Thanks, Trevor. You and your Pokemon were great. You had me pulling out every trick that I've learned."

"Which is what a rival needs to do. Looks like you're going up against Jason in the finals. Good luck and just remember to keep your guard up. That battle won't be easy and I'm looking forward to seeing it."

"Thanks,"

I held out my hand and we shook hands.

"Oh, and Adam?"

"Yeah?"

"When I first met you, I didn't see you fit to be a strong trainer. I just want you to know that I'm sorry that I said that and for doubting you. You are a strong trainer and it shows. You've made it this far and it's not just by luck. You really are Master Ketchum's son."

"Thanks, you're a strong trainer, too."

After meeting up with everyone outside of the stadium, Jason walked up to me and said, "I'm glad that you made it, Adam. There's nobody who I'd rather battle for title of Pokemon League Champion than my best friend."

"I'm glad to be battling you, too. It's almost like fate wanted us to meet in the biggest battle of our lives." I replied.

"Good luck tomorrow, Adam."

"You too, Jason. And may the best trainer win!"

**Author's Note: And so, Adam has won his semifinal battle, just like Jason has done. The two friends will be facing off in the Pokemon League finals.**

**Who will triumph and become the new Pokemon League Champion? Find out as the finals begin in the next epic, action-packed chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	64. A New Champion

**Author's Note: Guess what? Today is my birthday! A review about your thoughts on the chapter would be a great birthday present for me!**

This was it. It all came down to this. The final battle of the Pokemon League. I would be facing my best friend, Jason, and we knew each others' battling strategies better than anyone. We were so evenly matched that I had no idea which of us would win, there could only be one Pokemon League Champion.

The rain was pouring outside as a thunderstorm was raging, just like the storm that was raging inside of me. The stadium had a dome roof that was usually open to the sky but could be closed to cover the inside of the stadium in case of bad weather like today.

I looked into the audience and found my family and friends amidst the thousands of screaming people. Jason's parents were hoping that he would win and my parents and cousin were hoping for me to win. Michelle seemed torn about who to cheer for. After all, both Jason and I were her closest friends and she didn't want either of us to lose.

I was then snapped out of my thoughts as the announcer began to introduce the battle.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the final battle of this year's Kanto Pokemon League Tournament! The battles this year have been some of the most exciting battles that have ever happened in the history of the tournament, but none as spectacular as the battles that have been put on by our two trainers here today!

"This battle will feature two trainers who are both ten years old, who are both from Pallet Town, and who are both competing in their first Pokemon League Tournament ever! Adam Ketchum, the son of Pokemon Master Ash Ketchum, and Jason Oak, the son of Prof. Gary Oak! Folks, if you were hoping to see an exciting ending to the tournament, you couldn't have hoped for something more exciting than this! So let's get this battle started!"

"The Pokemon League Final between Adam Ketchum and Jason Oak will now begin." said the referee. "Both trainers will use six Pokemon with substitutions allowed and the battle will be over when all of one trainer's six Pokemon are unable to continue. Let the battle begin!"

I grabbed my hat and did something that my dad had done when he was going into a big battle: I twisted my hat around so that it was on backwards. Feeling more excited than I had ever felt in my life, I threw my Pokeball and yelled, "Venusaur, I choose you!

Jason confidently threw his Pokeball and yelled, "Charizard, go!"

No! I was at a disadvantage right from the start!

"Were you hoping that I would start with Golduck, Adam?" Jason said to me. "Well, when you bet, sometimes you lose."

Jason had a habit of sometimes getting overconfident in big battles, just like his dad. What he didn't know was that I had been secretly training my Pokemon to learn special techniques to beat Charizard, his strongest Pokemon.

"Charizard, use Flamethrower!"

"Venusaur, Razor Leaf!"

Charizard's fire easily burned through the leaves and hit Venusaur.

"Now use Fire Fang!" Charizard's mouth burned with flames as it sped towards Venusaur.

_Perfect! This is what I was waiting for!_ I thought to myself.

I waited for Charizard to get close enough and then said, "Venusaur, Poison Powder!" Venusaur let out a spray of poisonous powder from the flower on his back, which stopped Charizard and poisoned it. Jason looked very surprised.

"Don't get overconfident, Jason. I knew that Charizard was your strongest Pokemon, so I made sure that all of my Pokemon were prepared to deal with it, even those with a type disadvantage!" I said proudly.

"Use Razor Leaf!" I commanded. Charizard was a little wobbly after getting poisoned, so the time to strike was now! Charizard was bombarded by leaves and fell to the ground.

"Now it's my turn to go on the attack!" I said, all fired up. "Venusaur, return. Go, Golem!" I returned my Pokemon and quickly threw my next Pokeball. Golem now had the type advantage.

"Rock Throw!" I called to Golem. Rocks were thrown at Charizard but Jason acted too fast!

"No you don't, Adam! Charizard, return!" Jason returned Charizard and readied his next Pokeball. "Machamp, go!" Once again, I was at a disadvantage. Jason and I were switching our Pokemon around very quickly.

"Golem, use Rollout!" I shouted. Golem spun around rapidly and zoomed towards Machamp.

"Machamp, stop it with your hands!" Jason called out. When Golem hit Machamp's powerful arms, he continued spinning, but stayed in one place as Machamp held him back.

"Incredible! Machamp's strength is strong enough to keep Golem's Rollout at bay!" the announcer cried.

"Now lift it up!" Jason yelled. Machamp grabbed Golem with its four arms, stopping the Rollout, and lifted him above his head.

"Use Seismic Toss!" Jason screamed. Machamp jumped into the air, somersaulted, and slammed Golem into the ground, creating a large hole.

As Golem got back on his feet, I had no idea what to do! Golem was getting tossed around like a rag doll!

"Rock Throw, Golem!"

"Machamp, Karate Chop!"

Machamp used its arms to punch through the barrage of rocks as it ran towards Golem.

"Dynamic Punch!" Jason screamed. Machamp hit Golem so hard that he went flying up into the air and almost hit the roof of the stadium.

Then I got an idea. "Golem, Rollout!" I shouted to my Pokemon. Golem began to fall to the ground as he spun around rapidly. He picked up speed, going faster and faster as he fell, heading right towards Machamp. Jason finally realized what was happening, but too late. Golem slammed into Machamp, creating another large crater in the ground.

"Golem weighs more than 600 pounds. Not even a superpower Pokemon like Machamp can withstand that kind of weight when it falls and crashes onto it at speeds that high!" I said to Jason as Machamp laid there, moving only slightly.

"And just to make sure that it's over, Golem, use Rock Throw." Golem buried Machamp under tons of heavy rock, leaving only its head. Machamp tried to free itself, but was too weak and fainted.

"Machamp is unable to battle. Golem wins!"

It was close, but I had managed to defeat Jason's first Pokemon, thanks to a bit of luck. Jason returned Machamp and threw his next Pokeball.

"Golduck, go!" Jason announced. I was at a type disadvantage yet again but I still had one more trick up my sleeve that Jason didn't know about.

"Golem, use Earthquake!" Golem shook the battlefield and damaged Golduck.

"Golduck, Aqua Jet!"

"Use Rollout, Golem!"

Both Pokemon collided and the moves canceled each other out as smoke covered the battlefield. When it cleared, I saw that Golem was reaching the end of his rope. He had taken a lot of damage while fighting Machamp and he was also weak against water. It was time for me to use my secret weapon, I just had to get close enough.

"Rollout again!"

"Keep Golem away with Hydro Pump!"

Golem kept speeding towards Golduck. He got hit a few times but pushed through and knocked Golduck to the ground. This was my chance!

"Time to end this, Golem! Use Explosion!" I screamed. Golem began to glow and then a deafening boom echoed across the stadium, creating smoke and dust across the battlefield. When it cleared, both Pokemon were lying on the ground.

"Golem and Golduck are both unable to battle!" the ref declared.

Jason and I returned our Pokemon. It was a risky strategy, using Explosion like that, but I felt that it had paid off. Golem had beaten a Fighting Pokemon and a Water Pokemon, two types of Pokemon that he was weak against. I had lost only one Pokemon while Jason had lost two.

"Charmeleon, I choose you!" I shouted as I tossed my Pokeball.

"Fearow, go!" Jason shouted as he tossed his Pokeball.

With Golduck defeated, Jason had no Pokemon that had a type advantage over Charmeleon.

"Fearow, use Fury Attack!"

"Counter it with Slash!"

Fearow attacked with its beak, using rapid pecks. Charmeleon used his claws to fend them off but Fearow's Fury Attack was faster and Charmeleon couldn't counter all of the pecks.

"Use Aerial Ace!" Jason commanded. Fearow sped towards Charmeleon.

"Flamethrower!" I called to Charmeleon, who shot out breaths of fire but Fearow zoomed left and right and avoided the flames.

Charmeleon was hit but then I called out, "Grab onto Fearow, Charmeleon!" Charmeleon grabbed onto Fearow's wings and swung onto its back.

"Shake Charmeleon off, Fearow!" Fearow flew around in the air and twisted and turned but Charmeleon hung on!

"Fire Fang!" I yelled. Charmeleon first bit into Fearow's wing and then its neck with his burning jaws of fire.

Fearow then managed to shake Charmeleon off of its back and Charmeleon landed on the ground. Not waiting for him to recover, Jason immediately called out the next attack.

"Fearow, use Fury Attack!" Charmeleon was pummeled with rapid hits.

"Break free with Flamethrower!" I yelled. Charmeleon launched Flamethrower at close range and blasted Fearow away from him.

"Now use Fire Spin!" I cried.

"Dodge and use Aerial Ace!" Jason cried.

Fearow avoided the fire and hit Charmeleon with a full-force Aerial Ace, causing him to faint.

"Charmeleon is unable to battle. Fearow wins!" said the ref.

"You did great, Charmeleon. Your hard work won't be in vain." I said as I returned him. I grabbed my next Pokeball. There was only one way to deal with Fearow: a Flying Pokemon duel!

"Pidgeot, I choose you!" I yelled as I threw the Pokeball.

"Fearow, use Agility!"

"Pidgeot, you use Agility, too!"

Both Pokemon increased their speed. The battle would be even faster now!

"Aerial Ace!" Jason and I both called out at the same time. Both Pokemon zoomed through the air towards each other. They hit each other head-on and an explosion occurred. Both Pokemon flapped their wings, trying to maintain their balance and stay airborne as they emerged from the smoke.

"Fury Attack!" Jason shouted.

"Use Quick Attack to dodge!" I cried.

Pidgeot sped out of harm's way. Then I decided to use a technique that my dad had used in Sinnoh in his Veilstone City gym battle.

"Go from Quick Attack to Aerial Ace!" Building on the speed from Quick Attack, Pidgeot zoomed in twice as fast and struck Fearow with an even more powerful Aerial Ace! Fearow began to lose height and I knew that it was almost over.

"Finish it with Wing Attack!"

"Keep Pidgeot away with Fury Attack!"

Fearow tried its best, but Pidgeot broke through and struck Fearow with his wings. Fearow fell to the ground and didn't get back up.

"Fearow is unable to battle. Pidgeot wins!" said the ref.

As Jason returned Fearow, I knew that this battle could still go either way. I had four Pokemon left and Jason had three, but that didn't mean that I had an advantage just because I had one more Pokemon remaining than Jason.

"Haunter, go!" Jason yelled as he threw his next Pokeball. "Use Shadow Ball!"

"Deflect it with Wing Attack!" I yelled.

Pidgeot's wings glowed and they deflected the ball of dark energy to the ground.

"Keep using Shadow Ball!"

"Dodge with Aerial Ace!"

Haunter kept launching Shadow Ball after Shadow Ball in rapid succession but Pidgeot's speed enabled him to avoid them all as he veered left and right and up and down.

"Do it!" I called to Pidgeot. Pidgeot flew in amidst the Shadow Ball barrage and hit Haunter with Aerial Ace.

"Haunter, use Dark Pulse!" Jason called out the attack so fast that I didn't have time to react and Pidgeot was hit, but managed to stay in the air.

"Now use Hypnosis!"

"No!"

Haunter launched sleep waves and Pidgeot fell to the ground, fast asleep. This was bad. Pidgeot couldn't do anything while he was asleep!

"Shadow Ball!" Jason cried and Pidgeot was hit with the attack.

"Pidgeot, wake up!" I yelled. Pidgeot didn't respond.

"Dark Pulse!" Again, Pidgeot was blasted with the dark waves and was now looking beaten.

"Pidgeot, you have to wake up! Please!" I screamed. Hearing my cries, Pidgeot finally opened his eyes!

"That's showing 'em, Pidgeot! Use Aerial Ace!"

"Stop Pidgeot with Dark Pulse!"

Pidgeot was hit, but pushed through the attack and struck Haunter...and then he fell to the ground and fainted. That attack had used up the last bit of strength that he had left.

"Pidgeot is unable to battle. Haunter wins!" announced the ref.

"Great job, Pidgeot. You hung in there and did a great job." I said as I returned my Pokemon.

We were dead even again. Both Jason and I had lost three Pokemon and only had three Pokemon left. There was no room for any mistakes from either of us.

"Wartortle, I choose you!" I yelled as I threw my next Pokeball.

"Haunter, use Shadow Ball!" Jason commanded.

"Wartortle, use Water Pulse!" I commanded.

The ball of water and the ball of dark energy collided and exploded, creating smoke. I couldn't see Haunter, it blended in perfectly with the dark smoke. But I knew that it was there somewhere and I had a plan.

"Use Rapid Hydro Spin!" This was a combination of Hydro Pump and Rapid Spin that I had used in my semifinal battle against Trevor. Wartortle withdrew into his shell and sent water spraying out of the holes. The water was sprayed out over all of the battlefield and I heard Haunter crying out in pain. As the smoke cleared, I saw Haunter being pummeled with wave after wave of water, taking major damage.

Desperation was showing in Jason's eyes. "Haunter, use Hypnosis!" he yelled.

"Quick, Wartortle! Hide in your shell!" I shouted.

Wartortle withdrew into his shell and the sleep waves passed over him.

"Haunter's Hypnosis waves can't reach Wartortle if he's hiding from them in his shell." I said to Jason.

"Very clever thinking, Adam." he replied. "But we're not done yet!"

"You got that right! Wartortle, use Hydro Pump!"

"Dodge, Haunter!"

Haunter floated out of the way of the attack. Ghost Pokemon were very tricky to hit, but I knew how to beat them!

"Now use Dark Pulse!" Jason cried.

"Use your Counter-Shield!" I cried.

Wartortle spun around on the ground, spraying water everywhere into the air. The water blocked the Dark Pulse and like before, Haunter was hit with waves of water blasts.

This proved to be too much for Haunter, having already taken damage from battling Pidgeot. Haunter fell to the ground and fainted.

"Haunter is unable to battle. Wartortle wins!" the ref shouted.

Jason returned Haunter and threw his next Pokeball. "Tangela, go!" he called out.

Wartortle was at a disadvantage, being a Water Pokemon against a Grass Pokemon, so I returned him. I wasn't sure who to use. Venusaur was also a Grass Pokemon so neither Pokemon would be very effective against the other. Pikachu was my only other choice, but Electric attacks wouldn't be very effective against Grass Pokemon. But there were no other options, so I had to chance it.

I looked down at the ground beside me and asked, "Pikachu, are you ready to go?"

"Pika!" he replied and ran out onto the battlefield.

"Tangela, use Vine Whip!" Jason shouted.

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!" I yelled.

Pikachu dashed out of the way of the vines and hit Tangela.

"Grab Pikachu with your vines and keep him still!" Jason said. Tangela wrapped its vines around Pikachu so that he couldn't move. "Now use Sleep Powder!"

"No! Use Thunderbolt!" I screamed. I couldn't let Pikachu fall asleep! Pikachu shocked Tangela with electricity, which didn't do a ton of damage, but it stopped the attack and forced Tangela to let Pikachu go.

"Use Thunderbolt again!" I yelled to Pikachu. I knew that it wouldn't do much, but I had to chip away at Tangela's health little by little. Tangela was electrocuted again, but remained standing.

"Quick Attack, Pikachu!"

"Spin and use Vine Whip, Tangela!"

It looked like Jason had taken a page from me by using a spin like that. Tangela spun, swinging its vines around in a circle and Pikachu was hit and fell to the ground, unable to get past the swinging vines.

"Jump over the vines and use Iron Tail!" I yelled. Pikachu leapt into the air and his tail turned to metal. Aiming right at Tangela, Pikachu's attack hit its mark.

"Finish it with Volt Tackle!"

"Use Giga Drain!"

But Tangela's attack missed as Pikachu slammed into Tangela with all of his might, creating an explosion. As the smoke cleared, I saw that Pikachu was clearly hurt by the recoil, but it was worth it because Tangela had fainted.

"Tangela is unable to battle. Pikachu wins!" the ref declared.

As Jason returned Tangela, my excitement reached a new high. I was only one Pokemon away from winning the tournament! All that was standing between me and victory was Jason's Charizard. I knew that I couldn't let my guard down, though. After all, Charizard was Jason's strongest Pokemon. I had a secret plan of how to defeat it, but it would take all three of my remaining Pokemon to pull it off. Starting with Wartortle...

"Pikachu, come back!" I called. Pikachu ran back to my side. "Wartortle, I need you again!" I called. Wartortle reappeared as I threw his Pokeball.

Jason looked worried, since he knew that his Pokemon would be at a disadvantage, but he had no choice but to press on.

He threw his Pokeball and said, "Charizard, go!" Charizard reappeared but its breathing was labored because it was still suffering from the effects of the poison that it had been afflicted with from Venusaur's Poison Powder at the beginning of the match.

"Every second, Charizard is getting weaker and weaker from the effects of the poison, Jason." I said to my friend.

"Then I'll just have to defeat your Pokemon quickly, Adam!" he replied.

"But you have to defeat three while I only have to defeat one! Wartortle, Hydro Pump!" I yelled.

"Charizard, Flamethrower!" Jason commanded.

Charizard's fire burned through the water and created steam, which rose into the air.

"Hydro Pump, again!"

"Flamethrower, again!"

Just like before, the fire dissolved the water and more steam was created.

"Trap Wartortle with Fire Spin!" Jason cried. A vortex of fire surrounded Wartortle.

"Break out with Rapid Hydro Spin!" I cried. Wartortle spun, shooting out water from his shell, which vaporized the fire and even more steam rose into the air.

"I don't get it! Why can't Wartortle's water get through Charizard's fire?" I asked aloud.

"If Wartortle were a Blastoise, he would have a fighting chance. But I have a fully evolved Pokemon who is at a much higher level than your Pokemon." Jason explained. "As it stands right now, Charizard can easily burn through Wartortle's attacks."

"Then try this on for size! Return, Wartortle!" I returned my Pokemon and looked down at Pikachu. "Get back in there, Pikachu! I need you!" Pikachu ran back onto the battlefield.

"Charizard is partly a Flying Pokemon so Electric attacks are super-effective!" I said to Jason.

"Yes, but can Pikachu keep up with Charizard? You can't hit what you can't catch!" Jason replied.

"Just you wait and see! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" I shouted.

"Charizard, fly into the air!" Jason shouted.

Pikachu's attack missed and Jason immediately called out the next attack.

"Charizard, Flamethrower!"

"Dodge, Pikachu!"

Pikachu was quicker and dodged out of the way.

"Don't give Charizard an opening to attack! Keep using Thunderbolts until they hit!" I cried.

"Charizard, fly out of the way!" Jason cried.

Pikachu launched Thunderbolt after Thunderbolt, but they all missed and flew up into the air. I then noticed how exhausted Pikachu looked from using up all of that electricity. It didn't help that he had used a lot against Tangela, too.

"Pikachu, you're too tired! Return!" Pikachu ran back and I grabbed another Pokeball. It was time for the final phase of my secret plan to beat Charizard. It was risky, but I had to take the chance!

"Venusaur, I choose you!" I shouted, throwing my Pokeball.

Everyone in the stadium looked at me with dumfounded expressions. They were wondering why in the world had I chosen a Grass Pokemon to go up against a Fire Pokemon. Jason just smiled.

"So...you want us to finish the battle with the Pokemon that we chose at the beginning of our journey. Choosing sentiment over victory. Well, if that's how you want it, then this battle just turned in my favor!"

"That's what you think, Jason! Venusaur, grab Charizard and keep him there!" Venusaur reached up into the air and wrapped Charizard up in his vines, preventing him from moving.

"You really think that that's going to hold Charizard? Charizard, use Flame-huh?" Jason stopped in mid-sentence as a flash of light and a low rumble interrupted him. He looked up in the air and a look of surprise came over his face. A black cloud was in the air above the battlefield.

"A rain cloud? Indoors?!" he screamed in disbelief.

"That's not just a rain cloud, Jason." I said proudly. "That is a thunder cloud!"

I then explained it to him. "You see, the water that Wartortle used was vaporized into superheated water droplets by Charizard's fire, which created steam. The steam rose into the air and the droplets condensed into a cloud that's been charged with Pikachu's electricity. All of those Thunderbolts that he shot, which missed Charizard, were absorbed into the cloud and became lightning. And as I'm sure you know, lightning strikes the highest point that it can find, which in this case would be..."

"CHARIZARD!" Jason yelled in shock as he finished my sentence, finally realizing what was going to happen.

No sooner had that word left Jason's mouth than a huge bolt of lightning came down from the cloud and electrocuted Charizard. As more lightning came down, heavy rain poured from the cloud and drenched Charizard's body. Charizard loudly cried out in pain as it was hit with the elements of a storm. Weak against both Water and Electric attacks, Charizard was being bombarded with both types of attacks at once!

"Charizard, get out of there! Use Flamethrower on Venusaur!" Jason yelled desperately, seeing Charizard suffer. But Charizard was in too much pain to attack as the storm raged on over the battlefield.

"Don't let Charizard go until it faints!" I yelled to Venusaur.

"Charizard, you have to fight through the pain! Flamethrower, I know that you can do it!" Charizard gritted its teeth, aimed its head downwards, and launched the attack, hitting Venusaur.

"Hang in there, Venusaur! Just a little more!" I yelled desperately.

"BURN IT!" Jason screamed at the top of his lungs.

"HOLD IT STILL!" I screamed just as loud.

Flashes of lightning, pouring rain, and burning fire were all mixed into one! The sounds of our Pokemons' painful cries filled the air, drowned out by the screams of Jason and I. Our eyes were narrowed, our teeth were clenched, our hands were balled into fists! The rush of adrenaline was unlike anything that we had ever felt before! In that moment of intensity, we both finally understood what we were feeling. This was the feeling of never giving up or losing hope! The feeling of never losing faith in our Pokemon and their power and always believing in them to the very end, no matter how tough the challenge was! And we both realized that THAT is what it means to be a true Pokemon trainer!

A huge flash of light engulfed the stadium as the buildup of all that power was released in a huge blast, knocking both Jason and I off of our feet! Smoke covered the battlefield and neither of us could see what had happened. But as the smoke cleared and we got back on our feet, Charizard came into view, standing on the battlefield with burns and scrapes covering all of its body. Venusaur was lying on the ground, not moving. Nobody in the stadium spoke.

"Then the winner is Jas-" the announcer began. But then, Charizard wobbled and fell to the ground on its side and didn't try to get up.

I then looked at Venusaur, who struggled to get back up. I held my breath, silently encouraging him as he slowly got back on his feet and let out a triumphant, "SAUR!"

"No!" said the announcer. "The winner of the battle and the new Pokemon League Champion is...ADAM KETCHUM!"

**Author's Note: WHOA! Didn't see that one coming, did you?**

**After a long, incredible journey, Adam has beaten his best friend, Jason, and has become the newest Pokemon League Champion!**

**Where will the story go from here? What will happen to Adam, his friends, and family, now that the journey is over?**

**Find out as the celebrations and aftermath take place in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	65. Journey's End

"The winner of the battle and the new Pokemon League Champion is...ADAM KETCHUM!" the announcer cried. The stadium filled with loud cheers as the crowd started to scream.

_I won...I'VE WON! I was able to win my first-ever Pokemon League Tournament, something that dad hadn't even been able to do._ I thought to myself in complete shock. _I'm one step closer to my dream. One challenge is over, but many more still await me._

I shook my head and heard the deafening cheers and smiled and laughed happily. I had triumphed!

"Pika! Pika!" Pikachu cried, jumping onto my shoulder, saying his name happily. He was so happy for me.

"Thank you, Venusaur. You were great. Take a well-deserved rest for helping win the tournament. Thank you." I said, rubbing his head and returning him.

After I attached my Pokeball back to my belt and looked up, I saw Jason walking across the field.

"Congratulations, Adam. You did it. You won. That was the greatest battle that I've ever had, I'll never forget it." he said.

"Thanks, Jason. It was my greatest battle, too." I said to him.

He shook his head and smiled. "I still can't believe that you were able to beat Charizard, my strongest Pokemon. And you did it in a way that I never would've thought possible." he said, shaking his head.

"Yes, Charizard is your strongest Pokemon. There was no single Pokemon that I had which could beat it one-on-one, so I had to come up with a special strategy to beat it by using teamwork."

"Well, I clearly have a lot to learn about my Pokemon and about battling. But I'm still better than you in one area."

"And what's that?"

"Remember when we left Pallet Town and we each had a Charmander? We started a little contest of who could raise the stronger Fire Pokemon. Well, it looks like my Charizard is stronger than your Charmeleon."

"Don't worry, he'll catch up to Charizard soon. And then we'll see who's stronger."

"Yes, we will. But for now, enjoy your moment in the spotlight. Congratulations." Jason said, smiling and holding his hand up.

I smiled and met his hand with my own, giving him a high-five.

* * *

><p>A short time later, every Pokemon League participant was back, standing together in the Indigo Stadium. The rain outside had stopped by now and the stadium's roof was open. I was standing on a stage with the League President and my dad, and I received the Pokemon League trophy.<p>

"Congratulations, Adam. By winning the tournament, you now have the right to challenge the Kanto Elite Four: Karen, Bruno, Koga, and Prima. Will you challenge them?" my dad asked.

"Not right now, my Pokemon aren't THAT strong just yet." I replied.

"I understand. You can challenge them any time that you want."

"And with this, we close this year's Pokemon League Tournament. Thanks to everyone who competed and congratulations to have made it here. We hope to see you again." the announcer said.

I raised the trophy over my head and the crowd cheered and fireworks went off in the sky, signaling the end of the Pokemon League for this year.

* * *

><p>That night, after a long day of countless interviews and questions, I was finally heading back to the hotel with my dad. I had never been asked that many questions and it was often the same ones, too. "What was it like, winning the tournament?" "What are you going to do next?" And so on.<p>

"Hey, dad?" I asked.

"Yeah?"

"Did you ever have to go through that many interviews?"

He nodded his head. "When I won my first Pokemon League Tournament, I had to go through just as many interviews as you did. Every tournament that you win, you go through many interviews. I still have interviews to this day that I have to go to, but not as many as before. It's all just a part of becoming a Pokemon Master and winning in the Pokemon League. You get used to it over time, and you will, too." he replied.

We were now heading up the stairs to the second floor. My dad opened the door and allowed me to walk into the room first. Upon entering, I was knocked to the floor by an excited Michelle. She was hugging me and laughing happily.

"You did great, Adam! That was the most intense battle that I've ever seen you and Jason have!" she exclaimed. "So how does it feel to have won the Pokemon League?"

"Thanks, Michelle. It was my most challenging battle ever. I still can't believe that I won, it's so surreal." I replied.

"You know, that's very similar to how your mom reacted when I won my first Pokemon League Tournament." my dad said to me, causing my mom to laugh.

After we had gotten up off of the floor, my mom and Brittany walked over to me.

My mom hugged me and said, "Good job, sweetie. Congratulations on winning, I'm so proud of you. You and your Pokemon were great. That was the most exciting battle that I've seen in a while."

"You did great, Adam. It was awesome to watch you and your Pokemon battle." Brittany said as she hugged me.

_Michelle seemed to be the most excited about me winning. I wonder why that is? _I thought as I remembered her earlier reaction.

* * *

><p>After a few days of traveling, my mom, Brittany, and I walked through Pallet Town, heading to our house. Jason and his parents had left us when we passed the lab. Michelle had left us back at the Indigo Plateau to go back home to Cerulean City, since our journey was over.<p>

We walked into the house and my grandmothers were standing in the hall, waiting for me. "Welcome home. Adam, you did a fantastic job throughout the tournament. Congratulations on winning." my grandmothers said.

"Ash had to stay behind for a conference with the Elite Four about the tournament this year." my mom explained as she closed the door.

That night, we were all sitting in the living room, talking. Dad still wasn't home, but we all knew that he was fine and that his conferences could take a long time.

Then the door was heard opening and we stopped talking. I heard my dad's voice, talking. But who was he talking to? He then walked into the living room and a man dressed in jeans, a black and red shirt, and sneakers walked into the room behind him. He had sapphire blue hair and red eyes. It was Darien!

"At the conference with the Elite Four, I was finally able to convince them to let him go." my dad said to us.

Brittany's eyes widened and she jumped off of the couch and ran over to her dad, hugging his waist. She had her face pressed against his stomach. Darien knelt down and wrapped his arms around her and allowed Brittany to put head on his shoulder. You could easily see that he had really missed Brittany and she had missed her dad, too.

"I missed you, Daddy..." she said softly.

"I missed you, too. How have you been doing?" he asked as she pulled away and he stood up.

"Everything has been going great! Aunt Dawn, uncle Ash, Adam, and grandma have been very kind and welcoming to me."

Looking at Darien, I could see that he had changed from the first time that I had met him on my journey. He was like how he was when I last saw him at the Temple of Legends, but he wasn't as tense now. He was more relaxed, being free from his father and his control, he could let down the walls that he had built around him.

Darien had his hands in his pockets and was looking slightly uncomfortable and nervous. After all, this was his first time seeing my mom and his mom.

My mom walked over to him, a shocked expression on her face. "So...you're my long lost brother?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm your twin brother." he replied nervously, having not met my mom before.

My mom then put her arms around him, hugging him. His eyes widened in surprise. She had accepted him just like that!

"Wh-why? What's this for?" he asked in surprise.

"You're family and families are supposed to love and accept each other. I want you to feel welcomed and loved." she said, pulling back.

"Ash was right about you. You are so caring and accepting of everyone, even if you've just met them." Darien said, smiling at his sister.

Darien walked over to where my grandma was sitting. "Hi, mom." he said.

She stood up and hugged him, crying. "That's the first time that I've heard you call me 'mom.'" she said between sobs. "I haven't seen you in over thirty years. The last time that I saw you, you were still just a baby in diapers, and now here you are; a handsome, full-grown man. My little boy is all grown up."

Darien sat down on the couch and Brittany sat down next to him.

"I can't thank you enough for looking after Brittany for me." he said.

"You're welcome. She's changed a lot while living here." my dad replied.

"She even plans to be a coordinator someday. She saw some of the past contests that I had competed in and even went to the Grand Festival with us." my mom added.

"Are you okay with that?" Brittany asked.

"Yes, I want you to have dreams and goals to strive for. I'm proud of you." he said.

"So what's happened to you over all of these years?" my grandma asked.

"My father raised me to be a Pokemon Hunter and I've spent my entire life capturing and stealing Pokemon and killing people and Pokemon, too. What's worse is that I had no conscience and no remorse when doing it." Darien said, starting to explain his story.

"Everything changed the day that I met Adam. That led me to change my ways and become who I am now. But despite my evil ways, I had enough sense and control over myself to keep Brittany away from Team Rocket and my evil actions. I didn't want her to see what kind of horrible person that I was and I didn't want her to become like me.

"And despite us being family, I still can't understand how you can all forgive me for everything wrong that I've done."

"Darien, it's all in the past. What's important is who you are now. You're a changed man. You're no longer the same person that you once were." said my dad.

"It's not your fault, it's our father's fault. He was evil and so he raised you to be evil, too. You grew up not knowing better." my mom said.

"I'm sorry for not being there for you two all those years when you needed me." Darien said, looking at my mom and grandma.

"You're here now and we have plenty of time to still be a family." my grandma replied.

"Did you ever mention me to Dawn?" he asked.

"No, not until Adam mentioned you when he talked about his journey and when we met Brittany." my grandma replied.

"I hope that I didn't cause a rift between you two and in your relationship for not being mentioned for all of those years."

"Because it was just me and mom growing up, we were very close and told each other almost everything. It hurt me and hurt my trust in my mom when I learned that she was keeping my father and you a secret from me. But she explained to me why she did it and we're fine now." my mom said.

"Where's Brittany's mother?" my grandma asked.

"I don't know where she is." Darien replied.

I sensed that Darien wasn't being completely honest and was hiding something. But I wouldn't impose...for now.

"Team Rocket is still out there somewhere. What's worse, Hunter Mya and Hunter Oliver have escaped from prison! But their base in Kanto has been destroyed and no one knows where the leader or the rest of the members could be. Do you know if Team Rocket had any other bases?" my dad asked.

"There was only one base in Kanto. There may be more bases in other regions that only my father, Team Rocket's leader, knows about and never told anyone else. I'm sorry," Darien replied.

_I wonder if I'll encounter Team Rocket in the next region that I travel through and if I do, what will happen?_ I thought.

I saw my parents exchange a worried glance with one another. I knew that they were worried, especially with how Team Rocket was now. Team Rocket was no longer the same as they were when they were kids. This new Team Rocket was horrible and they had heard, and my dad had seen, what they were capable of. They had a right to be worried.

"Well, you and Brittany can stay with us as long as you want." my parents said.

"Thank you, that means a lot." Darien replied.

My mom's eyes suddenly lit up. "Why don't we take some time off and relax and be a family? I mean, after all of the danger with Team Rocket and Adam being on his journey, now that we're back together again, why not get to know our new family members? We could have fun and get to know each other better." my mom suggested.

"I could use some time off from traveling." I said.

"Sounds like a perfect plan, Dawn." my grandma said.

"We could all go on a tropical cruise through the Orange Islands and visit each one. Ash and I did that on our honeymoon."

Brittany's eyes were sparkling with excitement. "That sounds like so much fun!" she exclaimed.

I knew that she was excited because she would get to see a lot of new places. Anywhere she went, she was always in awe and excited, since she hadn't been to very many places in her life. Now she was able to see so many different places and it was all fascinating and exciting to her.

"Can I challenge the Orange Island gyms as we go?" I asked.

"Of course," my dad, said smiling at me. "Why don't we leave tomorrow?"

As my family started to talk again and make plans for tomorrow, I tuned out the conversation and thought to myself, _I've come so far since my journey began. When I began, I was dead-set on finding dad and I finally did, close to the end of my journey. I helped stop Team Rocket, found and saved dad, reunited my family, and discovered a missing piece of my family, too. I found out that I had Aura, and most of all, I won the Pokemon League, getting one step closer to becoming Pokemon Master. To top my journey off, I'm going to get to see the Orange Islands, face new gyms, and get to know my new family. This is going to be a lot of fun and a great experience._

**Author's Note: Adam Ketchum's Pokemon journey has come to an end. He and his family are all going to take a vacation in the Orange Islands to relax after a long, difficult time of their lives.**

**Stay tuned for the epilogue in the final chapter of Pokemon NG!**


	66. Epilogue

**Normal POV**

In Team Rocket's secret base in the Johto region, Team Rocket's boss, Jacob Berlitz, was talking to Michael, the last of his four Pokemon Hunters, in his office.

"How are the preparations going?" Jacob asked.

"Work is beginning as we speak." Michael replied. "We have people all across the Johto region at their assigned locations who are constructing the towers."

"And our numbers?"

"Weakened, due to our losses in Kanto. But rest assured, we have more recruits coming in daily. We should have our numbers back to normal by the time the plan is ready to be set into motion."

"Excellent. But with Ash Ketchum no longer in our custody, he can potentially hinder or stop our plans. We no longer have the strength to overcome him in battle like we did before, especially since he absorbed the power of the Temple of Legends and can summon the Legendary Pokemon."

"Then we must use a different tactic, and I think I know how. We-" Michael began but was interrupted by the door opening, revealing a male grunt.

"Sir, we have two people here that want to speak to you. They have something that I think you should see." said the grunt.

Jacob hated being interrupted during his meetings but agreed to see them and the grunt left the room.

"By the way," Michael said as they waited, "Did you hear that Darien has been released from custody?"

"Yes. Not to worry, though. He knows nothing about our base here. Remember the day before we went to the Temple of Legends? I told you, Oliver, and Mya about our base in Johto in case things went wrong. I told him nothing because I suspected his betrayal. The police know nothing about us."

The door then opened again and into the room walked two men, following behind two familiar faces.

"Oliver, Mya, I heard that you had escaped from prison." Jacob said to his two Pokemon Hunters.

"That was our doing. We needed them in order to find you, since they knew where your base was." said one of the two new men.

"I'll get to you two in a minute. I have to deal with them first." Jacob said to the two strangers.

He then looked at them and said, "You have both served me faithfully and have captured plenty of Pokemon and proven your value to Team Rocket. But still, you were unable to defeat the Elite Four at the Temple of Legends and allowed yourselves to get captured. You must be punished for your failures. But first, did either of you reveal anything about us to the police?"

"No, boss. I didn't say a single word about our plans or our base." said Oliver.

"Neither did I, sir. I am completely loyal to Team Rocket and our goals." said Mya.

Jacob said nothing, he just whispered something into Michael's ear. Michael then aimed his arm cannon and shot Oliver, turning him to stone. Michael then released his Dragonite, who launched a Hyper Beam and destroyed the stone form of Oliver, shattering it into pieces.

"Consider that your one warning." Jacob said coldly to a shocked Mya. "You'll suffer the same punishment as him if you fail again. Don't EVER make me regret which one of you I spared."

He then turned his attention to the two new men. "So you were the ones who helped them escape from prison?"

"Yes, we needed them because they were the only ones who knew the location of your base in Johto. We helped them escape, and in exchange, they took us here." explained the first man.

"And why would you want to come here?" Jacob asked.

"To join you and Team Rocket. We want to join because we all have a common foe that we want out of the way: Ash Ketchum. We hate him almost as much as you do." said the second man.

"And what is your grudge against him?"

"Both of us have been denied something that we deserve because of him. I've trained my Pokemon to be much stronger than his. I've trained them longer and harder but it's never enough. I deserved to be the Pokemon Master, not him. With him out of the way, I would take my rightful place." said the first man.

"And I lost the woman that I love and deserve to be with because of him: his wife, Dawn. We grew up together in Twinleaf Town and I've known her for my entire life, much longer than Ash has known her. I've also loved her for many years, long before she and Ash met. If she hadn't met him, she would've fallen for me instead." added the second man.

"When you captured Ash, I tried to take advantage of his disappearance to become Pokemon Master. He tried to take advantage of it to win back the heart of the woman that he loves. But we both failed to do so when he returned after you were defeated."

"So we both want Ash Ketchum out of the way for different reasons and you want him gone so that nobody can oppose your plans for world domination. Let us join Team Rocket and we will work together to satisfy all of our goals."

"And what could you possibly offer me? What could you bring to Team Rocket that could benefit us and our goals?" Jacob asked the two men.

"My Pokemon are among the strongest in the world, due to how I train them." said the first man.

"And I know more about Dawn and how she thinks and acts than anyone here. I was once a coordinator so I know how to adapt to situations and come up with ideas for Team Rocket." said the second man. "Between his strength and my knowledge, our plans would all be met much more easily."

_A trainer with a powerful Pokemon team on our side would prove quite formidable. And a smart trainer who could plan our strategies and manage our troops would certainly aid our operation. Not to mention that if one of our members became Pokemon Master like he wants to be, we could influence the entire world secretly from behind the scenes. The man who loves my daughter doesn't seem to know that I'm her father, though. But I won't be telling him that just yet._ Jacob thought to himself.

"What are your names?" he asked.

"Paul," said the first man.

"Kenny," said the second.

"Well, Paul and Kenny, your abilities could prove very beneficial to Team Rocket. If you swear your allegiance to me and aid us, I will make sure that you will achieve your goals, too."

The two men bowed slightly and said, "Yes, master."

"Then I welcome you to Team Rocket. Your training to become official members begins tomorrow. If you pass your tests, I will make both of you Team Rocket Executives."

Michael then decided to speak. "If I may, sir? I was about to tell you my plan to capture Ash Ketchum before they arrived."

"Yes, Michael. Please enlighten me. I think that our two new members and Mya should hear this as well." said Jacob.

"As I said, Ash Ketchum is far too powerful to be captured by force like he was before. I suggest that we force him to give himself up and surrender himself to us." Michael explained.

"And how do you propose we do that?"

"By exploiting his greatest weakness: his family. Unlike him, they are weak and easy to capture. If his family's safety hangs in the balance, Ash will do anything in his power to save them. By using them as leverage, we can force Ash to give himself up. Then, when he is out of the way, no one will be able to oppose Team Rocket! The world will be all ours!"

"Excellent thinking, Michael. We will capture his wife, son, and mother-in-law when the time is right." Jacob said.

"Why not capture them now?" asked Kenny.

"Because our plan to control the world is not yet ready. We will not hunt them down until we are prepared to put our plan into motion. Besides, we know where his wife and mother-in-law are living. However, his son is on a Pokemon journey and will needed to be hunted down and captured."

"What is this 'plan?'" asked Paul.

"You'll find out when you pass your tests. In the meantime, Michael and Mya will keep an eye out for his son when going out to capture more Pokemon. And if you find Darien, capture him as well and bring him to me. I'll take care of him personally."

"I do have to ask," said Paul, "The girl with the orange hair, that travels with Ash's son, who is she?"

"That would be the daughter of Misty, the Cerulean City gym leader." Michael answered.

"Why didn't I recognize it until now? She looks just like her mother. That pathetic little girl...is my daughter. It seems that things have just gotten a bit more interesting..." Paul said evilly.

**To be continued...**

**Author's Note: After two and a half years of writing this story, Pokemon NG has come to a close. We thank all of our readers and reviewers and everyone else who enjoyed our story, especially those who have been reading this story since it began, so long ago.**

**But the adventure is just beginning! Be sure to stay tuned for the next story in the Pokemon NG storyline as Adam and his friends return for new challenges in a new region! They'll meet new friends and enemies, face new challenges, and catch new Pokemon.**

**We hope to see you again in Pokemon NG 2: Johto Saga!**


End file.
